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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27876814">Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: In the Wake of Power</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lugialvr1994/pseuds/Lugialvr1994'>Lugialvr1994</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Dawn of Civilization [5]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Complete, Female Protagonist, Fictional Religion &amp; Theology, Gen, Gen Work, Legendary Pokemon, Moral Ambiguity, Politics, Redemption, Sequel, Spin-Off</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 09:20:58</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>51,208</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27876814</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lugialvr1994/pseuds/Lugialvr1994</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Following the grand adventure undertaken by Suicune, the Guardian of the Seas must reckon with what has taken place. Facing a new challenge to her legitimacy, the brewing conflict could have severe implications for the world’s future. </p><p>This story is the sequel to PMD: In the Wake of Eternity. It will also be the final installment in this series. Please see the opening notes for more information, including the recommended reading for this story.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Original Characters &amp; Original Characters</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Dawn of Civilization [5]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1621558</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Contemplating a Vow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Welcome to the second and final spin-off story of my second Pokémon Mystery Dungeon-inspired fanfic series. This story is to be considered the sequel to PMD: In the Wake of Eternity, even though it features a different protagonist. It is also going to be the last story in this particular series. I would say that anyone who wants to read this story should have finished Wake of Eternity first. Also, having read the original trilogy of this series, in particular the first two installments, should seriously enhance a reader’s understanding of this story. However, that is not a requirement, just a recommendation. This story does star a version of the Legendary Pokémon who graces my account name and profile picture, Lugia. However, I do not give her a complete “pass” in the story, despite my personal affection for the iconic Pokémon. This story ended up being probably my most morally ambiguous PMD-inspired work to date, I would argue. Hopefully, you all will see what I mean as you read.</p><p>This story features appearances by Pokémon introduced from Generation I through Generation VIII. Like my previous works in this series, it allows for Mega-Evolution, but not Z-Moves. Readers should also not expect Dynamax/Gigantamax to appear in this particular story. I would also like to cite the film Aquaman as a rough inspiration for some of the content early in this story. The film Black Panther also served as a very rough source of inspiration for some elements of the overall plot. Rest in Peace, Chadwick Boseman. Among many other things to many other people, you were the namesake of the love interest of the main heroine of my very first story posted on the Archive of Our Own, as was mentioned somewhere in the commentary of that story’s Author’s Cut Edition re-release. </p><p>With that all out of the way, this story will post new chapters every Monday and Friday until it is fully posted. I apologize in advance for any tabbing issues that will most likely appear somewhere in the posted version of this story. Thank you to everyone who has read my work to any reasonable extent so far. I hope that you all enjoy the fifth and final installment in the PMD: Dawn of Civilization series.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Deep Palace of the Trench Realm: The seat of power for the Lady Lugia. Three months after the conclusion of the Phoenikan Civil War:</p><p>            The Deep Palace was an ornate and impressive structure carved into the rocky face of a vast trench deep in the ocean. The trench lay between the Adalsian Continent to the east and the islands of Falira and Phoenika to the west. The ornate white and blue palace had halls large enough for even the largest oceanic Pokémon to traverse. It was decorated with ornate carvings of many aquatic creatures and plants. The palace and its decorations were made from stone that was resistant to the natural forces of erosion that were unavoidable for a structure located underwater. Smartly placed clusters of bioluminescent deep-sea plants kept the palace well lit. Pokémon native to the environment swam and crawled through the massive corridors of the palace. They were either servants, or guards. They all devoted to and paid by the palace’s ruler, Lugia, the one the outside world knew as the Guardian of the Seas.</p><p>Located far behind the grand columned façade of the Deep Palace was a simple, yet titanic and beautiful, chamber. Here was the place where Lugia herself most often dwelled. The chamber had a light blue floor with white patterns decorating it. The walls were mostly white and dark blue. Statues adorned the room. They depicted some of the world’s most ancient creatures, the Legendary Pokémon.</p><p>Standing in front of one of the statues was a towering, vaguely draconic, avian. Her body was mostly white, with some dark blue spines protruding from her back. Dark blue mask-like protrusions surrounded her eyes and she a light blue belly. Her wings ended in appendages akin to humanoids hands This was none other than Lugia herself, the Lady of the Trench Realm.</p><p>Lugia glared at the statue in front of her. It depicted an avian with brilliant feathers and a long beak. This was a statue of Ho-oh, the Legendary Phoenix, who Lugia had always believed was the closest thing she had to a sibling. It had been only three months since he had met his end in a duel that Lugia had tried and failed to stop.</p><p>Lugia’s mind had been returning to the day when Ho-oh had met his end over and over again for the last three months. She knew now, as she had then, that Ho-oh had not been a remotely benevolent ruler. However, for centuries, she had only acted to contain his misrule. She had almost never tried to counsel him about his egotistical and tyrannical behavior. She had never made much of an effort to make him change his ways. She had also never even remotely considered the possibility assembling an army and liberating Phoenika from Ho-oh with her own her own forces until the uprising that had ended the Legendary Phoenix’s reign. Ho-oh’s sins were his own. However, Lugia knew well that she carried her own share of the blame due to her past inaction.</p><p>Moltres, the Legendary bird of fire who viewed Lugia as essentially her mother, had hated Ho-oh and injustice in general for as long as Lugia could remember. Moltres’s island nation of Falira had both sheltered refugees from Phoenika’s civil war and warned travelers heading towards Phoenika of the danger on the larger island. However, Lugia had ordered Moltres to only do those two things and not to intervene against Ho-oh and his loyalists. Moltres had acquiesced reluctantly to Lugia’s orders. However, Lugia now regretted holding Moltres back.</p><p>On the day that Ho-oh had died and his reign over Phoenika had ended, Lugia had made a vow upon seeing his lifeless body. She had vowed that she could do whatever she could to be a better Pokémon and a better ruler. She knew that she had ignored the wider world far too often, safe in the knowledge that her personal holdings were quite difficult for most potential foes to reach. She was a creature of immense power and immortal life. Still, who and what had she been living for? She was called the Guardian of the Seas, but why? What had she done to earn such a distinction? What could she do going forward to truly earn her title?</p><p>Lugia continued to glare at the statue of Ho-oh nestled into part of the outer wall of her personal chamber. She stepped back slightly and was suddenly overcome with frustration at both her late brother and herself. Lugia inhaled deeply and summoned up a mighty blast of torrential winds that caused the water directly in front of her to churn rapidly. She then fired her signature attack, Aeroblast, directly into the statue of Ho-oh, shattering it into hundreds of pieces in an instant.</p><p>As Lugia tried to calm herself and regain her composure, she mentally apologized to whatever mortal artisan had carved that statue decades upon decades ago. Whoever they were, they were almost certainly dead now. Still, she had destroyed the result of their work, whoever they had been. As the, now unrecognizable, pieces of the obliterated stature came to rest on the floor of the room, Lugia made a mental note to keep the space where the statue of Ho-oh had stood empty. It would serve as a reminder of sorts for her. She knew that she was not Ho-oh. However, she also needed to keep working to distance herself from him for the rest of her days, limitless as they could end up being, as per the public vow that she had made.</p><p>As Lugia did her best to calm down and continued to stare at the blank pedestal for a moment, she heard someone swimming into her chamber. Lugia turned and saw that a female Lapras was floating just above the floor at the edge of her chamber. Lugia knew that this was Lapras was named Mera. Mera was the overseer of the civilian servants who lived and worked in the Deep Palace.</p><p>Mera bowed her head to Lugia slightly and asked her, “My Lady, might I ask what that noise was? Are you alright?”</p><p>Lugia sighed and replied, with frustration that she was unable to fully suppress still present in her voice, “Physically, I am as fine as ever. If you must know, I was destroying the statue of my late brother. I no longer feel as though he should be commemorated by such an impressive representation. He is no longer among the living and he was an unworthy ruler during his life.”</p><p>Mera nodded deferentially and asked in reply, “Should I have someone come and see if they can clean up the remains of the statue and dispose of them, My Lady?”</p><p>Lugia sighed deeply and replied, “If you wish, that will be acceptable.” As Mera was turning around to leave her Lady’s chamber, Lugia asked the Lapras, “Mera, you should know that I am still trying to find ways to work towards fulfilling the vow that I made three months ago. Do you think that I have been making any good progress in that regard?”</p><p>Mera turned back to her Lady and swam over closer to her. She seemed to think for a moment and then replied, “Well, you began to redistribute a significant portion of the tax money that the settlements that make up your realm have paid you back to them two months ago. I am sure that those subjects of yours’ are happy to have that money flowing back into their communities. You also used most of the money you kept to raise the pay rates of your personal servants and guards, myself included. We were all certainly pleased to receive that news when you announced it. Clearly you are making an effort to benefit the lives of those who consider you their Lady…”</p><p>As Mera trailed off, Lugia was wondering if she needed to find someone to consult on this matter who did not work for her. Someone who would be as unbiased as possible. However, there was nobody completely unaffiliated with her who Lugia knew would provide excellent counsel and who was easily reachable. Knowing that Mera was trying her best, but still not being in the greatest mood, Lugia asked the Lapras, “Mera, what do you honestly think it means to be good? I like to think that what I have done so far has had a positive impact. However, I do not yet feel satisfied and I may never. I might have improved the lives of many of those in my realm with my recent actions. Still, that is only a small portion of the entire world. Someone who can wield the sort of power that I can should be able to do more than just adjust their economic policy, as helpful as that can be.”</p><p>Mera seemed to think things over for a moment. She decided to reply, sounding somewhat awkward, “You are thinking about what it means to be good. …I have not thought of that too much myself. I sort of always assumed that you were a good Pokémon, Lady Lugia. Those few who knew much about both you and your late brother always believed that you were the wiser and more benevolent of the two of you. Still, I know that that will not satisfy you… Maybe you should be less worried about doing something on a grand scale? Perhaps, you should think about how small acts of kindness can really improve somebody’s day, or even their whole life?”</p><p>Lugia shook her head a bit and replied, “I am not only the ruler of this realm, I am considered to be a demigoddess and worshipped as such in coastal communities around the world. As much as small acts of kindness are great for most mortals, that sort of thing cannot cut it for someone like myself.”</p><p>As Mera looked nervous, Lugia sighed and admitted, “I should not be bothering you with this sort of thing. I should know what to do already, but I do not. I am sorry for scaring you, Mera. Please have someone come to clean up the pieces of the statue as soon as practical. You are dismissed.”</p><p>Mera looked a bit relieved and then bowed to Lugia briefly. She then turned to depart the chamber, saying as she did so, “I will have a servant sent to your chamber to take care of the clean up as soon as I can locate one. I am sorry that I could not be more help to you with your philosophical conundrum, My Lady.”</p><p>Lugia nodded and told Mera, “Thank you. I will need to continue to contemplate this problem. I know that I am capable of figuring out what I must do given time. I just do not want to waste too much time simply contemplating without taking real action.”</p><p>Mera nodded and then left the chamber. Lugia swam over to and stood on the pedestal that acted as her effective throne. She closed her eyes and did her best to think deeply. She wondered if she needed to seek out some great evil and destroy it? Maybe she needed to find a solid definition of goodness and use her influence to spread it to the world’s masses? What else could she do to make her existence as such a powerful being leave a positive impact on the world as a whole?</p><p>Lugia thought as deeply as she could until she was snapped out of her trance by a voice calling out to her. When she opened her eyes, she saw a male Omanyte servant cleaning up pieces of the destroyed statue of Ho-oh with his short tentacles. However, she also saw a female Mantyke wearing the white and blue sash and pouch of a Trench Realm Junior Courier swimming into her chamber. The Mantyke bowed to Lugia with her whole body and said, “Lady Lugia, I deeply apologize for the interruption. However, I bring concerning news from the vicinity of Ladoria Village.”</p><p>Lugia narrowed her eyes as she remembered that Ladoria was a small village on the eastern edge of her underwater realm. Ladoria sat relatively close to the ocean’s surface and often interacted with foreign traders, including ones from Moltres’s small island nation of Falira. Lugia asked the Mantyke junior courier, “What is your name and what news do you bring me?”</p><p>The Mantyke courier replied, “My name is Nerida, My Lady. As for my news, reports are coming in of secessionist sentiment welling up in Ladoria.”</p><p>Lugia’s eyes narrowed further. She knew that there had to be an external reason why a portion of her territory would want to leave all of the sudden. That was especially true considering the money that she had been returning to all of the communities under her control recently. She would have to learn more of what Nerida had to tell her. Then, a course of action would have to be decided upon. Lugia’s mind was taken off of her vow for the moment. However, it certainly remained in the back of her mind as she prepared to question Nerida further.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Word of an Insurrection</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Lugia was standing at the center of her personal chamber within the Deep Palace. A Mantyke courier named Nerida had just arrived in the chamber. Nerida had reported that significant secessionist sentiment had been welling up in the Village known as Ladoria on the eastern outskirts of the Trench Realm. The Omanyte servant who had been cleaning up the pieces of the statue of Ho-oh, which Lugia had recently destroyed, was doing his best to finish up his job quickly. He seemed smart enough to know that his Lady was about to have an important conversation.</p><p>            Nerida seemed to be waiting for Lugia to ask her for more information about the situation in Ladoria. She floated a short distance in front of Lugia, not wanting to speak out of turn when before the Lady of the Deep Palace.</p><p>            Lugia, as the Omanyte servant was finishing up his cleaning assignment and preparing to depart his Lady’s chamber, asked Nerida, “Please, tell me what news you bring from Ladoria. I want to know what exactly is happening there.”</p><p>            Nerida nodded her whole body and replied, as the nearby Omanyte bowed to Lugia as best as he could and scuttled out of the chamber at full speed, “My Lady, Mayor Arthur of the Village of Ladoria sent me here to report to you directly regarding the situation that he is dealing with right now. You see, a significant number of Ladorians have been talking about becoming independent lately. These secessionists have even converted some of the Mayor’s officials and a significant percentage of the local militia’s membership to their side. Mayor Arthur is very concerned, not about only his own position, but about the safety of his fellow Ladorians who oppose secession.”</p><p>            Lugia sighed angrily and then asked Nerida, “Do you know who is responsible for this sudden rise in secessionist sentiment? There has to be someone responsible for triggering this shift in the attitude of so much of the populace.”</p><p>            Nerida sighed as well and replied, “My Lady, Mayor Arthur and those still loyal to him and yourself are still trying to figure that out. There have been reports of late-night meetings at various homes. However, there has not been a significant influx of foreigners into Ladoria recently. The village does get more visitors than most parts of your realm, on account of its location. However, Mayor Arthur has concluded that if there is someone from outside the village pulling the strings, they are keeping their tracks well hidden, so to speak.”</p><p>            Lugia groaned under her breath. She then asked the courier before her, “Nerida, it sounds as though these rebellious Pokémon are threatening the Mayor of Ladoria and his fellow loyal villagers. Would I be correct in saying that?”</p><p>            Nerida nodded her whole body and replied, “Yes, Lady Lugia. From what reports I have been given, many of the Pokémon who have decided to back secession have recently taken to harassing the locals who disagree with them. They are calling those who still support the Mayor and remaining under your authority things like ‘Stooges’ and ‘Cronies.’ Beyond that, Mayor Arthur and other prominent local loyalists have been receiving public and private threats from some of the more emboldened secessionists.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded and replied, “Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Nerida. The Mayor of Ladoria did the right things by sending you here to meet with me. You are dismissed for now. Find somewhere comfortable to stay in the guest quarters of this palace. I will see about what can be done to gather more intelligence regarding the situation in Ladoria.”</p><p>            Nerida did her best to bow to Lugia and told her, “Thank you, My Lady. I will be taking my leave of you now.”</p><p>            As Nerida swam out of Lugia’s Chamber, Lugia made her way over to a cord that hung from the roof behind her “throne.” She pulled it with one of her wing-hands and waited. The cord led all the way to Mera’s quarters. It would trigger a sliding panel there that was designed to alert Mera that Lugia needed something. The panel would stay open until it was reset. That way, Mera would see it whenever she returned to her quarters, assuming that she was not there now.</p><p>            It did not take Mera long to swim into Lugia’s Chamber. The Lapras overseer bowed to Lugia and then asked her, “You need something, My Lady?”</p><p>            Lugia was quick to reply, “Yes, Mera. A courier has arrived from Ladoria Village. She informed me that a large number of the locals there have become radicalized against my rule and wish to become independent. They have apparently been harassing the loyal Mayor of the settlement and other local loyalists. I want you to find Colonel Cicero and tell him that I need to speak with him immediately. We need to find out every detail that we can about what is going on in Ladoria before we take action. I do not want to give these secessionists too much time to advance whatever they may be planning. However, I also do not want to act in haste and advantage them somehow. Still, I don’t like the idea of loyal citizens  being threatened by anyone. Action of some sort much be taken!”</p><p>            Mera simply bowed to Lugia once more. She then quickly left the chamber, understanding her orders.</p><p>            As Mera left, Lugia still felt quite concerned. She wondered what had motivated so many citizens of Ladoria to start opposing her rule and what could be done, if anything, to calm them down, or at least get them to stop threatening the loyal locals. She wanted nothing less than to be viewed as a tyrant like her late brother had legitimately been. However, she knew that she could not simply let these secessionists get away with their activities. Letting these rebellious Pokémon win would make her look weak and impotent. That would in turn possibly allow their rebellious ideas to spread. How could Lugia do anything good for the wider world when her own realm was engulfed in turmoil?</p><p>The sort of civil conflict that Lugia wanted desperately to avoid would cause great amounts of unnecessary bloodshed and property damage. Lugia knew that she could not allow her own domain to suffer Phoenika’s fate. That held true in her mind, even though she knew that the rebels in Phoenika had ultimately been in the right. They had been fighting for their freedom from the rule of an arrogant and egotistical creature who did not care for them. Lugia knew that she could not be such a monster. How could she be when she had never forced her subjects to build monuments to her ego, overtaxed them, or make them risk their lives in foolish military endeavors on foreign soil?</p><p>Soon enough, Mera returned with a male Dragonite who wore an impressive blue and white sash adorned with an ornate silver clasp that featured a pearl. This was Colonel Cicero, the current leader of the Honor Guards that Lugia employed as her small, yet elite, personal military. Most of the Trench Realm’s communities had their own militias, or at least a local guard or watch vested with police powers. However, the Trench Realm had never fielded a large standing army, or navy as some might say. Lugia had never seen the need for one. Her dominion was so isolated from any possible aggressor entities that could threaten its sovereignty that having a large military seemed like a waste of tax money, time and energy.</p><p>Cicero saluted Lugia, which he normally did instead of bowing. He then swam over closer to her. Lugia remembered how Cicero had earned his promotion to head her Honor Guards after the previous holder of the title had retired. There were two reasons. First of all, as a Major, Cicero had led a small force of volunteers from the Trench Realm that had fought valiantly in the Second Battle of Shawlia over three years ago. All that Lugia remembered about that battle at the moment was that the three Legendary Beasts had led the allied forces there and that their enemies had been fanatical infidels who had foolishly profaned the name of Arceus. Lugia had also chosen Cicero to take over leadership of her Honor Guards because he could operate effectively in the water, on the land and in the skies. That sort of versatility could prove valuable, especially seeing how most of Cicero’s subordinates were really only effective in the water. Only a few of them could move around with any reasonable degree of speed on land. Fewer of them could actually fly.</p><p>Cicero respectfully asked Lugia, “My Lady, what do you have need of me for?”</p><p>Lugia replied, “Colonel, a courier has arrived from the Village of Ladoria on the eastern outskirts of the realm. She has informed me that many of the citizens of Ladoria have begun to harbor strong secessionist sentiment and have been harassing loyal locals, including the town’s mayor.”</p><p>Cicero shook his head, clearly frustrated and said, “Well, that will not do. …Still, if we were to just attack Ladoria outright, a lot of loyal citizens could be hurt in the crossfire. …I apologize for interrupting. What are your orders, Lady Lugia?”</p><p>Lugia replied, “I agree with your sentiment regarding launching a frontal assault without warning, Colonel. What I want you to do is send in a few of the best and most trusted scouts your force employs to investigate the situation in Ladoria and gather as many details as they can. I will want them to not be in uniform when they do so. They are to try and learn about who might be the initial instigator, or instigators, of the mass unrest and what their motivations could be. Also, I would like at least one of those scouts to make contact with the Mayor of Ladoria and see if he knows anything that the courier he sent did not report to me. Your scouts are to avoid combat with the secessionists when possible and send back regular reports whenever they can. I will leave the particulars of how you and your subordinates carry this out to you, Colonel. I will want to hear every report myself once you receive it. Am I clear?”</p><p>Cicero nodded and then responded, seeming to be thinking about his new assignment already, “You are crystal clear, Lady Lugia. I will go and marshal my best designated scouts right away if you so desire. I will have them investigate Ladoria to the best of their ability. We certainly do not want rebellious thoughts to spread. I will admit to also being curious about why so many Ladorians have decided to oppose your rule now, of all times. The recent tax refunds should have made such ideas seem foolish…”</p><p>As Cicero trailed off, Mera suggested, “You know, Ladoria is located just past a kelp forest from here, on the very eastern edge this realm’s sovereign territory. Those that live there have probably always felt more independent than the residents of most other communities that make up this realm. Many of the citizens of Ladoria might have harbored secessionist thoughts for decades. However, there has to have been a catalyst that made them start voicing those opinions openly. Even after your recent act of generosity, they still want to leave your authority, My Lady.”</p><p>Lugia sighed and admitted, as Cicero was turning to take his leave of her and Mera, “I might even consider allowing them to leave if that turns out to be the honest desire of most of their community. Still, it sounds like these secessionists are acting improperly by harassing and threatening those who disagree with them. Something will have to be done. I just want to have more information about the situation first.”</p><p>As Cicero left the chamber, Mera replied, “Of course, My Lady. We will get to the bottom of this situation in due time.”</p><p>Lugia simply nodded as Mera bowed to her and left as well. She was determined to take action against the secessionists in Ladoria. However, she just hoped that whatever action she took would not end up simply reinforcing whatever negative image the secessionists had of her. Hopefully, the actions she and her supporters took would not cause more harm than good.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Escalation and Preparation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            One week had passed since Lugia had learned of the situation in the village of Ladoria. The reports of rabid secessionists who wanted to leave her realm and were harassing those who wanted to stay had troubled her greatly. She was still not completely sure of how to resolve the situation. She also wanted to know who the most likely culprit behind the recent outpouring of disloyal thoughts was. Who had been stirring up many of the inhabitants of Ladoria and why?</p><p>            Colonel Cicero, the leader of the Trench Realm’s Honor Guards, had sent out four of his most trusted scouts to investigate Ladoria. Some basic reports had been sent back regarding the situation in the village. It was indeed true that secessionist sentiment was now being openly voiced in the frontier village past the kelp forest. However, it had become clear to the scouts that whoever was coordinating the spread of the idea of Ladorian independence was doing a phenomenal job of it. Over half of Ladoria was now in support of secession, including the head of the local militia and many of his subordinates. The secessionists seemed to want to create what they called the “Ladoria Free State.” Those who were opposed to the formation of the LFS were under increasing pressure to leave the village, or change sides. It seemed like a few Pokémon had entered the village in the last couple of months and stayed there. That included one who had apparently become quite close with Vladimir, the Sharpedo commander of the Ladoria Militia. It was still not completely clear whether or not the new arrivals were the ones responsible for the LFS movement rising up so quickly.</p><p>            Lugia had been asked to meet with Cicero in the main briefing room of the Honor Guards’ Headquarters. The fortified stone structure was built into the side of the rock face only a quick swim from the façade of the Deep Palace. Lugia had decided to bring her Mera with her. She thought that the Overseer of her palace might have some thoughts worth hearing regarding whatever Cicero seemed keen on telling them.</p><p>            Lugia, Mera and Cicero were all standing around a massive table that had a three dimensional map of the trench realm carved into it. The map table was in a way both a work of sculptural art and a useful tool for the Honor Guards. Cicero was holding a thin metal pointing stick, which he aimed dramatically directly at the spot where Ladoria was marked on the map.</p><p>            As Lugia and Mera looked over to the spot where Cicero was pointing, the Dragonite Colonel explained, “My scouts have just returned, completely exhausted, long before I had originally expected them to. The report that I have received from them is not a pretty one. It seems that the Sharpedo Militia Head Vladimir and a Dragalge associate of his named Trajan have declared the foundation of the Ladoria Free State unilaterally. They planned to take the remaining loyal residents of their village as hostages and use them to stop a potential counterattack. However, Mayor Arthur caught wind of their plan and quickly evacuated the loyal civilians from the village covered by the last few militia members who he could count on. They have fled into the kelp forest and are probably heading for the nearest loyal settlement. Apparently, Vladimir and Trajan are still considering the possibility of tracking down the evacuees and trying to use them as hostages.”</p><p>            As Cicero finished, Lugia’s eyes narrowed. As Mera looked to her, she ordered, “This situation has clearly escalated faster than we could have predicted. It is time for us bring it back under control! Colonel, I want you to quickly assemble a force of Honor Guards that you believe will be large enough and experienced enough to defeat the militia of the so-called Ladoria Free State. We need to move quickly and get the attention of those rebels focused on us. I want us to depart by the end of the day! Mera, I want you to handle affairs at the palace while we are away.”</p><p>            Cicero looked slightly taken aback, he then asked, “Lady Lugia, it sounds like you intend to go with us to retake Ladoria and defeat the secessionists.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded sharply and explained, “I made a vow to be a better Pokémon not long ago, as you should know. I do not intend to just stay in my palace in relative safety and comfort while you and your subordinates are out there risking your lives. I will not simply be observing from the rear, either. I want to confront these rebels in person and show them and the world that I am no coward! I will not be like Ho-oh was, making his servants to do all the work and make all of the sacrifices just because he believed it was his divine right to order them about as he pleased! I will be there to help you lead the charge, Colonel. Mera, do you understand what you need to do?”</p><p>            Mera seemed less surprised than Cicero was that Lugia was planning on helping lead the assault on Ladoria. She replied, “Of course, My Lady. Shall I have our couriers send out any messages to the still-loyal settlements regarding the plan to recapture Ladoria?”</p><p>            Lugia nodded sharply again and told Mera, “Yes, actually. I want the following message to be spread across the realm and possibly beyond: We are going forth to put an end to what has become a violent insurrection, the leaders of which were willing to use civilians as hostages in order to achieve their unilateral goal. We want to make Ladoria, and the surrounding area, safe for her inhabitants once again. We will engage these unlawful secessionists and defeat them, ideally with minimal permanent casualties and physical damage to Ladoria proper.”</p><p>            As Mera was doing her best to memorize what Lugia had just told her, something she had become pretty good at during her years of service to the Sea Guardian, Cicero smirked a bit. He explained, “Even if the LFS knows that we are coming, I doubt that most of their militia’s fighters and whatever civilians they conscript in time will be all that well disciplined compared to my troops. Most of them will also be severely lacking in combat experience compared to my frontline elites. A force of between thirty to forty of the Honor Guards should be able to crush this unprovoked uprising in less than a day, especially with your close-range support, My Lady.”</p><p>            Lugia replied, “I admire your enthusiasm, Colonel. Still, we should not allow ourselves to get overconfident. The LFS could still very well have outside support, based on what your scouts reported recently. From what I remember, that Dragalge named Trajan was reported to only have become a resident of Ladoria quite recently. He could very well be a foreign agent of some sort.”</p><p>            Cicero simply nodded and saluted Lugia. He then responded, “I will be off to gather my best troops and inform them of what our mission is. I will personally come and find you when we are all ready to depart, My Lady. We should be able to reach Ladoria tomorrow afternoon if we depart well before the end of the day today. I am aware that you could reach the settlement much faster on your own, of course.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded and then Cicero swam away to begin gathering his troops for the coming assault on Ladoria. Mera, as she was about to return to the Deep Palace, told her Lady, “I hope that your mission goes well. It sounds like the enemy leaders will be some of the biggest threats you will face. I do think that, as powerful as you are, it is quite brave of you to lead from the front. You know that you could be staying safely down here and that nobody would openly question your decision if you did so.”</p><p>            Lugia smiled down at Mera and told her, “I will not allow this aggression against my authority and the integrity of this realm to stand. However, I will begin to prove that I am not Ho-oh by leading from the front and risking myself in the battle. I intend to inspire my followers, rather than make them fear me, or view me as spineless.”</p><p>            Mera turned back to Lugia and said to her, “My Lady, if you do not mind my saying so, it sounds like you are obviously still troubled regarding your late brother and his improper behavior.”</p><p>            Lugia sighed deeply and admitted, “Yes, I guess that that should be painfully obvious to everyone around me by now. Ho-oh not only failed to live up to the standards someone with his, and my, power level should live up to. He made his subjects on Phoenika build monuments to his ego and tried to enslave the three Pokémon he once brought back to life. He almost never risked himself in open combat and he always insisted that his Legendary status and immortality made him immune from the criticism of any mortal. I stood idly by and allowed him to continue his misrule for centuries. It was wrong of me to do that. Now that he is gone, I want to distance myself from his memory in any way that I can. Know this, Mera, I want to earn the respect so much of the world has for me. Maybe if these Ladorians had asked to secede through an official diplomatic request and laid out their case, no violence would be necessary right now. However, they have forced me to take action. I will show them that they have made multiple mistakes and that they will have to pay for their misdeeds. There is no backing down now!”</p><p>            Mera bowed to Lugia and replied, “I understand, My Lady. Best of luck once more. I will go and relay your earlier proclamation to our couriers so that all of this realm will soon know what is going on.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded to Mera as she left the briefing room. The Guardian of the Seas then turned her attention back to the map table. She glared down at the spot where Ladoria sat. She could not help but feel personally attacked by the actions of the nascent Ladoria Free State and her leadership. She knew that if some Phoenikan Settlement had tried to secede while he was in power, Ho-oh would have felt exactly the same way. However, she still could not help herself. She was going to show the militia of the LFS what it truly meant to anger her. They were not about to get away with their acts of aggression.</p><p>            Within the next roughly four hours. Cicero returned to Lugia and informed her that he had assembled a force of forty of his most experienced troops. Some of them had been surprised that they were deploying for a real combat mission so suddenly. On the other hand, many of them had been excited to finally put their training to the test in a real battle. The Honor Guards, as their name implied, did not have to fight in massed battles very often. They had historically been kept trained and ready for action as a contingency for any sort of major military threat to the Trench Realm and her allies. If Lugia’s dominion were to ever become involved in a large-scale war, it was always assumed that all of the community militias would come together to supplement the small standing force. Still, Lugia was glad that there was a military force that answered directly to her, even though it only numbered around one-hundred and fifty members in total at a time.</p><p>            Lugia briefly inspected the forty troops that Cicero had rapidly chosen and assembled for the mission in one of the two main assembly halls of the Honor Guards’ Headquarters. Pretty much all of them were fully-evolved, if evolution was applicable to their species. Wearing their white and blue sashes, these soldiers were the ones who Cicero said were the best among his command that he had been able to gather and brief quickly.</p><p>            As Cicero looked on, Lugia finished inspecting the troops and then announced, “I would give some sort of speech. However, there is little time to waste. We need to advance on Ladoria before the secessionists can fortify their position, or take hostages. They should be aware that we are coming, but not have much time to prepare. We will move out immediately! To Ladoria and to victory we go!”</p><p>            Lugia swam out of the assembly hall and out into the trench with Cicero right behind her. His forty subordinates followed closely in a loose formation. The forty-two Pokémon swam at full speed up into the partially-lit trench and began to climb upward, closer to the ocean’s surface.</p><p>As Lugia led the formation, with Cicero right behind her, she knew that she had not been involved in direct combat for years. Still, she was well aware that she was a mighty combatant when roused to action. She fully planned for both the LFS and her Honor Guards to witness her power. She would just have to make sure that there was a Ladoria left to recapture and return to her rightful Mayor after she and her elite troops were through with the violent secessionists holding the frontier settlement.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. The Assault on Ladoria</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            The evening of the day Lugia and her hastily-assembled force of Honor Guards had departed, she and her troops had ended up resting just outside of the still loyal settlement of Karshala. That town lay past the edge of the trench proper, but was still considered part of Lugia’s realm. They had made good time on their advance towards the rebellious frontier settlement of Ladoria. Lugia and her followers were still unsure of where the ousted Mayor of Ladoria, Arthur, and his fellow refuges had gone. However, that was unlikely to keep mattering if they captured Ladoria proper. Hopefully, they would prevent the escape of the rebels and learn the truth about the foreign Dragalge Trajan who had gotten suspiciously close to Vladimir, the Sharpedo commander of the Ladoria Militia.</p><p>            After doing a small amount of Restocking in Karshala, Lugia led Colonel Cicero and his troops up into the ocean and away from the town. They were headed for the far-eastern edge of the Trench Realm’s territory. As it became midday, they found themselves swimming through a vast forest of kelp. Cicero ordered his soldiers to keep a tight formation and keep their eyes on each other. He did not want anyone to get lost on their way to their destination. Ultimately, the disciplined soldiers of the Honor Guards kept their formation tight behind their Lady and their Colonel and they made it through most of the kelp forest without much trouble.</p><p>            As Lugia and Cicero were about to reach the eastern edge of the kelp forest, Cicero told his Lady, “You should know that once we leave these forests, we will be almost to Ladoria. We should certainly expect to face resistance to our advance as soon as we are spotted.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded sharply and replied, “I understand, Colonel. We will not be utilizing stealth for this mission. We want to make a big showing of our might while also accomplishing our strategic goals.” Lugia then chuckled, “Besides, I am a little too big to be all that stealthy anyways.”</p><p>            As Cicero simply gave his Lady a respectful nod of understanding, they reached the eastern edge of the kelp forest and just kept on swimming. It felt like less than an hour until Lugia began to see a small village on the ocean floor below and to the east of her. The village looked to have mounds of sand and earth, as well as some large boulders, positioned strategically as primitive cover positions to the immediate west of her. Of course, those positions would be less effective when approached from above. That was simply a reality of being underwater.</p><p>            Now, Lugia began to notice a number of Pokémon scrambling in the village below. It seemed that she and her followers had been detected by the so-called Ladoria Free State. A number of aquatic Pokémon were making for the barricades and taking up their positions. At the same time, at least twenty Pokémon led by a Sharpedo swam upwards and began to form up in the waters above Ladoria. Lugia was confident that this Sharpedo was Vladimir, the secessionist leader of Ladoria’s militia.</p><p>            Lugia told her troops, “Hold position behind me for now! I will give the Ladoria Free State one chance to surrender. I doubt that they will accept my offer. However, it is worth a try.”</p><p>As Cicero and his forty soldiers took up their positions, Lugia swam forward. She made sure not to get too distant from her followers while looking determined and purposeful. As Lugia closed in on the secessionist formation, she called out, “I have come to personally bring a message to those calling themselves the Ladoria Free State! Your rebellion is unlawful and unwarranted! You have forced a number of your fellow citizens to flee their homes and tried to use them as hostages. You have also refrained from bringing your grievances to me, or any of my representatives, in a peaceful and diplomatic matter. I will give you all one chance to surrender your movement and end this before it begins….”</p><p>As Lugia was about to continue, the Sharpedo at the front and center of the LFS formation in front of Lugia shouted back, “So, the tyrant herself has come to try and negotiate! We of the Ladoria Free State will not allow ourselves to be ruled over by you any longer! You have come to us and we will meet your challenge by defeating you and ending your reign! We know how unworthy you truly are and will not be under your control any longer!” The Sharpedo then shouted, “Charge! I will target the tyrant! You all, cover me!”</p><p>As the other LFS fighters called back, “Yes sir, Commander Vladimir!” some nervously, some excitedly, Vladimir Mega Evolved and shot forward through the water towards Lugia. Ranged attacks also began to be launched upwards from behind the makeshift barricades below.</p><p>            Cicero ordered his subordinates, “Advance! We will take out their close-range fighters and then advance on their long-range snipers once nobody is left to cover them!”</p><p>            As both forces of Pokémon swam rapidly towards each other and exchanged ranged attacks, Lugia quickly noted that there were at least fifteen enemies holding the barricades below her. Cicero was hopefully right about his troops being more experienced and disciplined then the LFS Militia. Lugia also saw that her enemies were all wearing dark blue and gold sashes and other, similarly colored, signifiers of their allegiance.</p><p>            Lugia refocused herself in time to realize that Vladimir was now upon her. He brought down his mighty fangs on one of her wings hard enough that she screamed in pain and her vision grew hazy from the raw agony she was in.</p><p>            As Lugia tried to snap out of the pain she was in and shake Vladimir off of her, she heard a male voice calling up from behind the LFS defenses, “Be careful, Vladimir! We did not expect her to come to us so quickly! She is still a mighty opponent!”</p><p>            As Vladimir let go of Lugia’s wing with his fangs and was about to respond to whoever had been calling out to him, Cicero came screaming in towards the Mega Sharpedo. The Dragonite charged a fist with lightning and rapidly punched Vladimir so hard that he was knocked back a good distance in the water.</p><p>            A pair of Honor Guard Kingdra kept three LFS Carvanha away from Lugia and Cicero as Vladimir glared at Cicero. The Mega Sharpedo screamed at Cicero, “If you defend her, than you will die alongside her!” Vladimir then sheathed his fangs in ice and bit into Cicero’s stomach.</p><p>            As Cicero looked faint and staggered back, Lugia saw three Honor Guard Mantine trying to draw attacks from the LFS snipers away from him and herself. She then glared at Vladimir and shouted, “We have had more than enough of you!”</p><p>            Lugia fired off an Aeroblast directly into Vladimir. The Mega Sharpedo was buffeted by the almighty concentrated winds, even while underwater. The attack just kept going past Vladimir and practically obliterated a LFS Luvdisc, who had been trying to attack one of the Kingdra fighting her allies.</p><p>            Vladimir tried to recover from the mighty attack that Lugia had just hit him with. He then looked ready to jet down to his forces’ barricades below. However, Cicero charged him from behind and crashed into him with a second electrified punch. Vladimir’s Mega Evolution wore off and he desperately tried to charge his fangs with ice again. However, Cicero smashed his nose in with one final charged strike. The Commander of the LFS militia stopped breathing and his body just floated in the water, lifeless.</p><p>            Lugia had a feeling that Vladimir’s death would not be good for the enemy’s morale, as LFS ranged attacks continued to shoot up from the barricades, the remaining close-range LFS Pokémon began to fall back towards them. Two enemy Carvanha were downed by the Kingdra fighting them as the third swam away.</p><p>            Lugia began to dive towards the barricades as plenty of enemy ranged attacks had little effect on her scaled hide, especially when compared to Vladimir’s forceful bite.</p><p>            Cicero held back a bit as his soldiers dived for the barricades, he then shouted, “Bubba! Clear a path for everyone! You know what to do!”</p><p>            From the rear of the Honor Guards’ formation, the other reason they could not exactly be stealthy on this mission advanced. Bubba the Wailord, an Honor Guard Captain, began to swim at full speed downwards towards the remaining LFS defenders, who were now facing his comrades.</p><p>            The three Mantine Honor Guards from before strafed an enemy position with rapid-fire spat seeds, taking out two LFS Remoraid in the process. Bubba swam past Lugia, who slowed a bit to let him pass, and headed right for the boulders at the center of the LFS fortifications.</p><p>            The same male voice from before called out from behind the LFS positions, “No! Damn, he is coming right for…”</p><p>            As Bubba was covered by his comrades against enemy ranged attacks and his large body withstood many of them, he slammed at full speed into the boulders, plowing right through them and seriously disrupting the LFS’s defenses. His ramming attack took down two enemy Octillery who had unable to get out of his way in time.</p><p>            With Bubba looking pretty much unfazed and the enemies around him now starting to panic, the Wailord called out, “Target cleared!” He then unleased a massive sweeping blast of concentrated water from his enormous mouth. He tremendous attack injured three enemies and took down some of their secondary defenses.</p><p>            As Cicero was now in the rear of the formation, thanks to the nasty freezing bite he had taken, Lugia took the lead and her forces dived upon their enemies. Ten new LFS reinforcements were incoming from the village. However, these looked to be inexperienced fresh recruits, not combat veterans.</p><p>            Lugia swam above and past Bubba as most of her enemies were now divided by the Wailord’s successful ramming. She saw an enemy Qwilfish rapidly firing spikes at a nearby Honor Guard Wailmer. As the Wailmer withstood the barrage but looked wounded, Lugia conjured a series of large boulders and tossed them right into the Qwilfish, crushing her almost instantly upon impact.</p><p>            As an Honor Guard Huntail charged past Lugia and bit down hard into a LFS Finneon, Lugia saw Bubba and two of his Wailmer subordinates destroying much of the remains of the enemy defensive positions. As that happened, Lugia admitted aloud, “I like Captain Bubba. He certainly gets the job done.”  </p><p>            Lugia summoned up her own blast of highly-concentrated water and used it to down an enemy Binacle who had been trying to engage one of her Mantine allies. The LFS Militia members were losing morale quickly as the battle raged around them. Lugia was happy to see that the limited forces of the LFS had clearly not been ready for this sort of a counter-assault to come from Lugia and her soldiers. Cicero had clearly followed his orders and picked highly experienced members of his force for this mission as well.</p><p>            As Lugia set her sights on an enemy Skrelp who was falling back towards Ladoria proper, she heard the male voice from before shouting at her, “Lugia, sister of the late Ho-oh, tyrant of Phoenika, face me!”</p><p>            Lugia turned to see a male Dragalge swimming towards her alone. He was wearing a blue and red band of some kind with a faux gold star adorning it. The Dragalge called out to his followers who were still alive and conscious, “Get out of here! I am sorry, but you will have to abandon Ladoria to the enemy! I brought us to this point, so I will face the enemy tyrant myself. I will hold her off for as long as I can.”</p><p>            Lugia heard Cicero calling out, as most of the remaining members of the LFS Militia turned around and began to flee towards their village, “We will leave the enemy leader to our Lady if she so wishes! Pursue the stragglers and see if you can bring them down, ideally non-lethally!”</p><p>            Lugia then turned to the Dragalge and asked him, “Trajan, I presume?”</p><p>            The Dragalge nodded and responded, “Yes, that would be me. I accept full responsibility for my failure to carry out my mission here. As part of that, I will engage you myself, even despite my low chance of success!”</p><p>            Lugia readied herself for a fight and asked Trajan, “So, you were the key instigator here. Why did you challenge my rule and what is that band that you are wearing?”</p><p>            Trajan simply responded, “You Legendary Pokémon are all the same, arrogant tyrants who believe in their own divine right of rule! Your time is nearly up. Zygarde and Ho-oh, have both been felled, even if it was by their own kind! Soon, mortals will begin killing Legendaries! The world will be free of your ilk!”</p><p>            As Lugia’s soldiers did their best to pursue the fleeing LFS Militia members, who now looked to be joined by some Ladorian civilians in their retreat, Lugia called back, “I see that you will not answer my second question…”</p><p>            Trajan seemed no longer interested in talking. He launched a sphere of poison through the water that exploded onto Lugia, wounding her.</p><p>            Lugia recovered quickly from the toxic blast and fired off one of her Aeroblasts into Trajan, as one of his fleeing allies far behind him was knocked out by Lugia’s attack, the Dragalge remained conscious. He then charged up his tail with blue-ish draconic energy and rushed headlong towards Lugia.</p><p>            Lugia realized that Trajan was going to try and knock her back with his tail slam. She shouted, “You will see what else I am capable of now!” Lugia charged up her entire body with a similar-looking energy to what Trajan was utilizing and charged at him through the water at full speed.</p><p>            Trajan was about to strike Lugia with his tail. However, the Guardian of the Seas struck him with all of her might, her body charged with draconic energy, and he was knocked to the seafloor. The energy that had been covering his tail dissipated and he groaned in terrible pain.</p><p>            Lugia landed on the seafloor next to Trajan, who glared up at her, as Lugia’s followers swam above them, chasing after the fleeing LFS Pokémon, Trajan stammered, “Tiberius, I am so sorry. I was too rash. Still, I know that you will pull through in the end… The reign of the immortals will soon be…”</p><p>            As Lugia was about to try and question Trajan, he breathed his last breath and expired. Lugia stomped on the seafloor and shouted aloud, “Damn it! I hit him too hard! We won’t be able to question him now… Still, who is Tiberius? Maybe he is the true prime mover behind this whole mess?”</p><p>            Lugia knew that the LFS was pretty much defeated now. Both of the movement’s main leaders were now dead. Still, it looked like there could be a bigger mastermind at work here. What was the deal with the band that Trajan had worn? Also, who was the mysterious leader apparently named Tiberius?</p><p>            Focusing on the situation at hand, Lugia launched herself off of the seafloor to join Cicero and his comrades. She was still somewhat wounded. However, she was going to help her forces try and round up as many LFS survivors as they could. They would have to question their vanquished enemies as thoroughly as they could if they were to learn what had really been going on in Ladoria.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. The Aftermath of Ladoria</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            The Battle of Ladoria had been a resounding victory for Lugia and her force of Honor Guards. The well-trained and disciplined force that had been sent from the Deep Palace had been victorious without suffering the deaths of any of its members. The worst that had happened to Cicero’s troops was that a couple of them had been knocked unconscious and a few more had suffered notably grievous injuries. Still, the defenses set up by the, now defeated, Ladoria Free State had not been remotely sufficient to hold off Lugia and her troops.</p><p> Soon after the battle, a courier who had been stealthily watching the battle from a distance had arrived. She had been observing Ladoria on behalf of the ousted Mayor Arthur. He and his fellow pro-Lugia Ladorians had been hiding to the southwest of the village in the kelp forest. Now, they were free to return home. Ladoria had been seized and the LFS was no more. However, Lugia’s victory was not complete.</p><p>            The two most important LFS commanders had both perished in the battle. Vladimir and Trajan were both dead and dead mons told no tales. The more concerning thing regarding Trajan was that he had mentioned someone named Tiberius who he seemed to ultimately answer to. Whoever Tiberius was, it was looking very likely that he was the real mastermind behind the rapid rise of the Ladoria Free State movement. Also, the relevance of the red and blue band with the faux gold star that Trajan had been wearing was still unclear.</p><p>            When Lugia and her followers had chased after the fleeing LFS survivors and the civilians who fled their home, around ten enemies had managed to get away. That number had included at least one Pokémon who had been wearing a band akin to Trajan’s. He had been at the head of the group of evacuees, leading them away from Ladoria as fast as they could swim. While some members of the LFS had escaped the battle and were now heading to parts unknown, over fifteen of the fleeing secessionists had been knocked out, or rounded up, by the pursuing Honor Guards led by Lugia and Cicero. The rebel militia members and civilians who had been corralled were taken back to Ladoria under heavy guard. They would be staying in their home village for now. However, they were all strongly advised to formally surrender and to not resist in any way.</p><p>            Despite the thorough defeat of the LFS, none of the few Pokémon among them who had been wearing the same sort of band that Trajan had worn had been apprehended alive. For the evening, Lugia had decided to camp her forces in and around Ladoria and wait for the loyal refugees led by Mayor Arthur to return to their home village. While they were waiting to hand the rightful Mayor his settlement back, Cicero was put in charge of trying to find out which civilian and military members of the vanquished LFS could be trusted to receive conditional pardons. Those that were willing to disavow their rebellious behavior could stay in Ladoria, which would be patrolled by a force of Honor Guards for the time being, and return to their lives. Those who refused to disavow the LFS would likely need to be tried for treason and imprisoned somewhere under guard.</p><p>            As the defeated members of the LFS who had been unable to escape were being questioned to varying degrees of success, Lugia made it clear that the captives were not to be tortured for information. Still, she wanted to see if any of the defeated enemies were willing and able to divulge anything about the mysterious Tiberius. Lugia wanted to know the whereabouts and plans of the supposed mastermind who seemed to not only want to see her reign ended, but possibly to bring down other Legendary Pokémon as well.</p><p>            As Lugia was standing on the seafloor on the western outskirts of Ladoria, it was getting darker. Lugia was awaiting the arrival of Mayor Arthur and his group of refugees. Inside of the, thankfully intact, village, Cicero was in charge of what was being done with the vanquished members of the LFS. Most of the arrested members of the failed independence movement were now demoralized and seemed unlikely to resist further. A few of them were claiming that they had gotten swept up in the “revolutionary fervor” that had recently gripped Ladoria and now genuinely regretted their actions. Most of them were impressed, even if grudgingly so, that Lugia had arrived in the flesh to lead her Honor Guards against their militia.</p><p>            As Lugia began to make out a small procession of aquatic Pokémon exiting the kelp forests, she heard a male voice saying, “Lady Lugia, one of the Pokémon we arrested says that she is willing to tell you what she knows about Trajan and the others wearing those bands. Colonel Cicero has her waiting in the village’s main square.”</p><p>            Lugia turned around to see a Wailmer Honor Guard Corporal floating nearby her. She then told him, “Very well then, I will speak with this prisoner. Please keep watch here in my stead. I believe that those Pokémon in the distance may very well be Mayor Arthur and his loyal citizens returning home.”</p><p>            The Wailmer Corporal did his best to salute Lugia with one of flippers. He then floated forward to keep watch where she had just been standing. Lugia then swam over towards Ladoria. She passed by a number of Cicero’s subordinates as she swam over the western portion of the small settlement. Lugia carefully landed in the village square located in the approximate center of Ladoria.</p><p>            Lugia saw that Cicero and one of his Kingdra Lieutenants were watching over a female Brionne who was looking understandably nervous. Lugia then asked Cicero, “Colonel, is this the prisoner that I was informed of by one of your Corporals?”</p><p>            Cicero nodded and responded, “Yes she is, My Lady. She says that she is willing to tell you what she does know about the foreign agitators who arrived in Ladoria on one condition. From what we understand, there were only four initial agitators at most. One of them was Trajan, their leader. One of the others definitely escaped the battle. A third one of them was sent somewhere else before today’s battle. The final agitator, who has been reported to be a Lileep, was apparently in Ladoria. It seems like she most likely snuck away during the battle before Trajan ordered a full retreat.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded and then looked down sternly at the Brionne. She then asked her, “What is your name, girl? Also, what is your condition for telling me what you know about those who instigated the uprising in your home village?”</p><p>            The Brionne nodded, still looking reasonably scared. She told Lugia, “My name is Mari, ma’am. As for my condition, my mother has remained loyal to you despite my conversion to the LFS movement. She fled the village with the Mayor recently. If you, or one of your officers here, would put in a good word to her regarding my cooperation, then I will tell you what I know.”</p><p>            Lugia replied, “I believe that we have a deal, Mari. Colonel Cicero, I will leave it up to you to have one of your subordinates carry out our end of the bargain with this former rebel’s mother.”</p><p>            Cicero saluted Lugia and told the Kingdra Lieutenant who was keeping watch over Mari, “Colette, once we learn what Mari here knows, you are to locate her mother upon her return to this village and inform her that her daughter has been cooperating with us.”</p><p>            Colette nodded and replied, “Understood, Colonel.”  </p><p>            Lugia continued to look down at Mari. She told the Brionne, “You may begin. Tell us absolutely everything that you know about the foreign agitators who riled up the citizenry of Ladoria against my authority.”</p><p>            Mari simply nodded, still looking nervous and defeated. She then replied, “Yes, ma’am… The agitators arrived around a month ago. At first, they claimed to be traveling adventurers and explorers who would only be in town for a short period of time. However, they soon began meeting with as many citizens as they could in varying levels of privacy. They would always ask why Ladoria was loyal to the Trench Realm first. Then, once they had someone’s attention and interest, they would start disparaging Legendary Pokémon, particularly yourself. They would argue that Ladoria, and all of the other Trench Realm settlements, would be better off independent. They said that you were giving us all some of our paid tax money back because you were scared of ‘getting what was coming to you’ after Ho-oh’s recent death. Trajan managed to get an audience with Militia Head Vladimir soon after his arrival in this village. Not long after that initial private meeting, the two of them started being seen together frequently. They seemed to start ‘feeding off of each other’ in terms of their secessionist sentiment soon enough.”</p><p>Mari stopped for a moment to think. As she did so, Lugia realized that Vladimir must have harbored a reasonable degree of disloyal sentiment for quite some time. Trajan and his associates’ arrival must have been the spark that fully lighted the fire of his desire to lead a local revolt against her.</p><p>When Mari continued, she explained, “Once Trajan had struck up his friendship with Vladimir, they began to convince more and more Ladorians to support independence from your realm. Things just kept escalating as many native Ladorians started doing the job of the initial agitators for them. I think that one or two of the original agitators were rumored to have even been concerned about how fast things had been moving. Eventually, the point was reached where Vladimir and Trajan enacted their, now failed, plan to declare the Ladoria Free State independent. There were certainly concerns voiced about the part of the plan that involved taking hostages. However, it was decided that that was the best way to avert a counterattack, as nasty of a ploy as it would have been. Still, there was concern that your forces would come here and attack us even if hostages were taken.”</p><p>Lugia then decided to ask Mari, as Cicero and Colette looked on, “What do you know about this mysterious figure known as Tiberius? Trajan mentioned him as though he answered to him. Based on what Trajan said about Legendary Pokémon, it sounds like this Tiberius and whatever he is planning could threaten much of the world. Or, at minimum, the integrity of my realm.”</p><p>Mari sighed and told Lugia, “Ma’am, all that I know about the one known as Tiberius is this: He seems to be the ultimate leader of the agitators and that he is a Pokémon of some kind. I do not even know what his organization is called, assuming that it has a formal name. Trajan seemed to answer to him. However, at least one of his fellow agitators warned him on at least one occasion that Tiberius might not want to Ladorian independence declared so quickly, or for them to try and take hostages as a way of keeping Ladoria independent.”</p><p>Lugia nodded and sighed. She then told Cicero, “I believe that Mari has upheld her end of our bargain. I want you and your soldiers to keep watch over her and the others former rebels for the night. I also want you to make a plan to divide up our forces here. Some of them will be staying in the village for now, while the rest will return home with us. Tomorrow, we will head back to the Deep Palace. Once there, I will want to have a message sent to Zapdos and any other agents we can muster. We must learn all that we can about this Tiberius and his shadowy organization!”</p><p>Cicero saluted Lugia and told Colette, “Please escort Miss Mari to the area where we are keeping the other rebels for now. Find out her mother’s name as per my earlier orders as well.”</p><p>As Colette escorted Mari away, the Wailmer Corporal from earlier showed up. He informed Cicero and Lugia, “Mayor Arthur and his loyal citizens and militia members have returned to Ladoria. They were all relieved to hear that we retook their home with minimal collateral damage. They were also impressed that the Lady Lugia was here in the flesh to lead our assault.”</p><p>As Cicero was leaving to go and divide up his troops, Lugia nodded and replied, “That is all good news. Please inform the returning former refugees that a force of Honor Guards will be staying here for roughly the next month at minimum. They are also to be thanked for their loyalty and quick actions made in order to avoid being taken as hostages by the secessionists.”</p><p>The Wailmer nodded his whole body and then floated off to carry out his orders. As Lugia swam upwards to find a place to rest the night, she was still worried about both the LFS members who had escaped the battle successfully and the identity and objectives of Tiberius and his followers. She wished that Trajan had survived the battle and been interrogated. However, it was unclear if he would have willingly divulged any sensitive information anyway. Regardless, Lugia knew that retaking Ladoria had not ended the real conflict, whatever form it would take. She just hoped that things would not continue to escalate as quickly as they had done so recently in Ladoria.</p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Launching an Investigation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Two days after her force’s victory at Ladoria, Lugia was back in the Deep Palace. Following the Honor Guards’ victory over the nascent Ladoria Free State, it had been decided that the surviving former rebels who would not swear oaths to not re-attempt their secession plans would be kept under guard in their own home village. Mayor Arthur was back in control of Ladoria. Also, a somewhat small, but experienced, Honor Guard unit was camped just outside of the village. They were under orders from Colonel Cicero to be ready to assist the Mayor at a moment’s notice. Messages had been sent out via couriers that the secessionists of the LFS had been defeated, even though a few of them had successfully escaped the fall of their movement. Where the rebel evacuees had been heading was still not apparent. However, they were now most likely outside of the Trench Realm’s sovereign territory. It was therefore unclear what could be done about those fugitives now.</p><p>            What concerned Lugia more than the LFS fugitives was what had been omitted from her most recent public proclamation for the time being. She was more concerned about the mystery Pokémon named Tiberius. Who was he and how many followers did he have? Also, what was his endgame? All that Lugia and her servants knew was that it was probably related to bringing her, and possibly other Legendary Pokémon, down. It seemed as though the recent death of Ho-oh and other Legendary Pokémon before him had something to do with Tiberius’s motivations.</p><p>            Now, Lugia was standing in her personal chamber of the Deep Palace. Mera was with her. Cicero was back in the Honor Guards’ HQ at the moment. Mera, who had just arrived in her Lady’s chamber and congratulated her on her recent victory asked her, “My Lady, you asked to meet with me as soon as you returned to your chamber. What is it that you wish of me?”</p><p>            Lugia informed Mera, “There is something that you should know that was not part of the information given in my recent proclamation. I now know for a fact that the failed uprising in Ladoria was started by a small group of foreign agitators. They seemed to wear dark blue and red bands with one faux gold star on each of them. Trajan, the leader of the agitators, mentioned someone named Tiberius before he breathed his last breath. It sounds like this Tiberius Pokémon is the true mastermind behind the Ladoria Free State movement. However, it also sounded like Tiberius might have not wanted Trajan to move their plan along as quickly as it was moved along. Regardless, I want whatever agents we can muster to begin investigating this Tiberius and anyone wearing those bands with the faux gold starts.”</p><p>            Mera seemed to think for a moment. She then mentioned, “Lady Lugia, the bands you mentioned remind me of a species of Pokémon who often dwells in inland rivers and ponds. They are called Crawdaunt. Crawdaunt are known as powerful fighters and can be very dangerous when roused to violent action. Maybe there is some connection between the Crawdaunt species and Tiberius’s conspiracy?”</p><p>            Lugia admitted, “That is certainly possible, Mera. However, it does not matter to me what mortal species Tiberius and his associates belong to. What matters to me is that we find some kind of a lead regarding what he is up to and how many supporters he has recruited.”</p><p>            Mera nodded to her Lady and replied, “I will see what I can do about having an investigation launched regarding this Tiberius and his organization. However, we have never employed all that many foreign service agents, as you well know.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded back at Mera and said, “You should still see what you can do about launching a broad-reaching investigation across the settled regions of the oceans. Have Colonel Cicero informed that his available resources are to be at the investigation’s disposal. There is little time to waste. I will not take this challenge, unclear as it’s true nature is, lightly! I also intend to head to the surface and meet with Zapdos personally at his home tomorrow. He has been my herald for some time and should be able to launch an investigation that will cover the nearby landmasses.”</p><p>            Mera bowed to Lugia and turned around. It looked like she was about to leave the chamber. However, she then turned back to her Lady and said, “I must say that I hope that this situation does not get in the way of your working to fulfill your oath, My Lady. Also, should Cicero or I send someone to the nearby isle of Falira? Moltres always seems willing enough to assist you on the rare occasions when you ask for her help directly. Maybe she, or some of her subjects, know something about the possible conspiracy we may be facing? Some of her resources could also be used to bolster our investigations, especially above the waves.”</p><p>            Lugia felt that Mera had just spoken a bit out of turn. However, the Lapras had made two very good points. She smiled down at her Palace Overseer and replied, “Regarding my oath, I still take it very seriously. I believe that if this Tiberius and his associates are a threat to the world beyond this realm in any way, then stopping them will Pidove tail nicely with my intention of being a better Pokémon. As for Falira and Moltres, you are right that she could prove helpful. She has never refused to aid me before, especially considering that I have not demanded her assistance all that frequently. Please have a trusted courier sent to Falira. They should explain the Tiberius situation, as I have explained it to you, to Moltres and ask for her assistance in conducting our investigation.”</p><p>            Mera bowed to Lugia once again and then took her leave of her Lady. After the Lapras had left, Lugia decided to rest for the remainder of the day. As she did so she contemplated what sort of Pokémon her new enemy Tiberius would turn out to be. However, what interested Lugia more than his species and rough level of combat experience was what his motive was. Clearly, he had a grudge of some kind against Legendary Pokémon. However, his reasons for holding that grudge were still unknown to her. Lugia could only hope that a clearer picture of who her new foe truly was would emerge in due time.</p><p>            The next morning, Lugia awoke early and then quickly departed from her Deep Palace. She left Mera in charge of the palace’s staff, as she had during her military expedition to Ladoria. So far, the investigation into Tiberius and his organization was still just in its earliest stages. Mera, Cicero and others were still gathering the scouts and agents who were to search the oceans for information on the conspiracy that had spawned the LFS and said conspiracy’s leadership.</p><p>A courier had been sent to Falira to meet with Moltres as well. Lugia fully expected that the Legendary Bird of Fire would lend some sort of assistance to the investigative effort. Moltres did view Lugia as essentially her mother, after all. In some way, Lugia was sort of Moltres’s mother. The same was true for the other two Legendary Birds, including Zapdos, who Lugia was going to go pay a visit to.</p><p>Lugia rapidly ascended higher and higher through the waters of her trench home. Eventually, she left the trench and then closed in on the surface of the ocean. She then slowed her ascent and started swimming north. Soon after, she breached the surface of the ocean and flew straight for a small island to the north of her. This isle was even smaller than Moltres’s home of Falira to the south. Unlike Falira, this island lacked a volcano, or other raised natural formation of any kind. It was known as Likala. Likala was mostly flat with a small town made up of mostly brown stone buildings covering much of its western half. At the center of the town was a tower with a dome at the top. Columns ringed an open space that made up the tower’s top floor. This was the residence of Zapdos. While it was reasonably modest compared to Moltres’s Igneous Citadel, it was still the most impressive structure on the island by far.</p><p>Lugia flew closer and closer to Likala, which was considered the only territory of the Trench Realm to be above the surface of the ocean. As she did so, she gained altitude. She was headed right for Zapdos’s tower.</p><p>When Lugia began to fly over Likala’s singular settlement, the locals there bowed to her as she passed over them. While Zapdos was Likala’s ruler, he was often away carrying out his duties for Lugia as her herald and ambassador. Therefore, the town council was frequently left in charge of Likala’s few internal affairs. Regardless, Lugia was still considered the highest political authority figure in the region and Likala was still under her ultimate authority. Like every other settlement of the Trench Realm, Likala’s small town had received a significant tax refund recently.</p><p>Lugia flew in between two widely-spaced columns of Zapdos’s tower and then landed. She barely fit comfortably in the large chamber. Also standing in the chamber, having clearly been awaiting her arrival, was a male yellow avian who was smaller than her, but still much larger than most Pokémon. This was Zapdos, Lugia’s loyal herald. He acted as the Sea Guardian’s main intelligence gatherer and ambassador in the world beyond her realm.</p><p>Zapdos bowed to Lugia and asked her, “My Lady, to what do I owe the honor of your personal presence in my home?”</p><p>Lugia replied, “Zapdos, as you might have already been informed, there was some recent unrest in the village of Ladoria on the eastern border of my realm. Many residents of that village tried to secede and attempted to take hostages from among the remaining loyal citizens. While their secession plan was foiled and the two top leaders of the Ladorian independence movement were slain in battle, I now have reason to believe that someone named Tiberius is the true mastermind behind the unrest. It seems as though his followers wear blue and red bands with a faux gold star adorning them. He and his cohorts seem to be opposed to the reign of creatures like ourselves over certain regions of the world. It was also mentioned that this Tiberius believes that now that a couple of Legendary Pokémon have been slain in battle, the time could be ripe for more of them to be killed, including possibly by mortals.”</p><p>Zapdos nodded slowly as he listened to his Lady. He then told her, “I have been made aware of your recent actions regarding the pacification of Ladoria. However, the existence of this mastermind you call Tiberius is news to me. It is certainly worrying to me that there looks to be an anti-Legendary conspiracy out there in the world. I honestly wonder if Tiberius, or someone close to him, was harmed or killed by a Legendary Pokémon, or the servants of one. Either way, based on what you have just told me, we do not know how far his influence reaches and who else could be opposing him.”</p><p>Lugia nodded sharply back at Zapdos and then told her herald, “I have come here to ask you to begin an investigation with whatever agents and resources you can muster into the true nature of the Tiberius Conspiracy. Any solid information that we can gather about this anti-Legendary movement would be useful at this point. While Ladoria has been secured for now, who knows what could happen if this conspiracy and its leader are given time and space to execute whatever they are ultimately planning.”</p><p>Zapdos bowed to Lugia and responded, “I understand your orders, My Lady. I also assume that you have also reached out, or will reach out, to Moltres and see what the Falirans can do to help us in this task. She and her subjects’ aid will make investigating the nearby larger landmasses for signs of the conspiracy easier.”</p><p>Lugia nodded and admitted, “You and Moltres do share intelligence often, as I know you did during the recent Phoenikan Civil War that led to Ho-oh’s demise. Hopefully, the two of you will be able to cooperate effectively in this investigative effort. For now, I will return to the Deep Palace to coordinate the investigation from there. If the investigation takes too long to bear fruit, then I will see about visiting some coastal communities personally. I know that there are some that revere me, or at least respect me. They should be willing to offer some degree of aid to our efforts.”</p><p>            Zapdos bowed to Lugia one more time and responded, “I will do my best to carry out your orders, My Lady. We will do what we can to uncover who this Tiberius really is and whatever other details we can about his conspiracy. It sounds like his agents slipped up at Ladoria. Hopefully, this will give us an opening to stop him and his supporters.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded back at Zapdos and then turned around. She then took off from the tower and flew south as Zapdos flew off to gather what agents he could. As Lugia prepared to dive under the ocean, she hoped that her agents and allies would soon be able to uncover more about the Tiberius Conspiracy. All that Lugia had of it for the moment was a rough outline. She wanted to have the blanks filled in sooner rather than later. She did not want to give her new enemies time to take further action.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. The Band of the Star</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>---</p><p>One evening ten days after the Battle of Ladoria. The command tent of a medium-sized encampment located somewhere in the southern reaches of the Tarkasian Continent:</p><p>            Three Pokémon occupied the command tent at the moment. Two of them were wearing dark blue and red bands adorned with faux gold stars. One of those two was a male Xatu, the other a female Lucario. The third occupant of the tent was looking over a map which depicted much of the known world. The continents of Adalsia, Takadia, Larokia, Tarkasia, the Grand Island, many other islands and stretches of ocean were all represented on the impressive map. He was a male Crawdaunt.</p><p>            As the Crawdaunt was looking over the region of ocean nearby the islands of Falira and Phoenika that constituted the Trench Realm, he heard his Lucario companion saying, “Tiberius, I know that you are concerned about Trajan and his team. We all knew that sending them to investigate Ladoria and see if they could unravel the village’s loyalty to Lugia was a risky move.”</p><p>            Tiberius looked up from the map and over to the Lucario standing across the table from him with her arms folded. He responded to her, “I am well aware that it was a risk, Kiri. However, when one has plans to change the world, risks are often necessary. I still wonder how Lugia will react to seeing some of her subjects turning their backs on her. Admittedly, if she is the sort of creature that I believe she is, then she will show her true colors.”</p><p>            The Xatu spoke up to say, “That is why the plan was indeed risky. Trajan volunteered to lead the mission out of raw conviction. If Lugia is anything like the, thankfully late, Ho-oh, then she will probably be outraged at the thought of any of her holdings wanting to secede from her realm. There was always the chance that most Ladorians would not want to leave the Trench Realm anyway. Ladoria was always supposed to be a test, a ‘poking of the Ursaring,’ if you will.”</p><p>            Tiberius nodded at Earnest, the Xatu who had just spoken. He then added, “I admit that Lugia is not the easiest target. However, her defeat could be the catalyst for the change we all want to see occur. If all goes according to plan, the reigns of beings like her will soon be a thing of the past.”</p><p>            Kiri simply nodded and replied, “Still, I hate to think of the costs that will be incurred in lives and property before this is all over. We can only hope that the world we will create will be worth it all…”</p><p>            Tiberius and Earnest both looked over to Kiri as she had stopped speaking abruptly, the four aura-sensing organs on the back of her head were waving wildly. Before either of the two males could ask her anything, Kiri told them, “I am picking up someone entering the camp who I have not sensed in a while. I think that it’s actually Adrianna!”</p><p>            Tiberius responded, “She was one of our agents assigned to go with Trajan! Kiri, see if she is heading this way! If she has really returned here so suddenly, then something terrible might have befallen the rest of Trajan’s team!”</p><p>            Kiri nodded and replied, “She has spoken with two of our sentries and is now on her way towards this tent as fast as she can move. Shall we await her here? She should be here momentarily.”</p><p>            Tiberius nodded his upper body and then the trio awaited the arrival of their agent. It was not long until a female Lileep burst into the tent. She was wearing a small band akin to the ones that Ernest and Kiri wore. When she did so, she seemed reasonably fatigued, but briefly bowed to Tiberius and his two lieutenants. This was indeed Adrianna.</p><p>            As Adrianna was recovering a bit, Tiberius gave her a moment to rest. However, it was not long until he asked her, “Why are you back alone? What happened at Ladoria? You seem exhausted.”</p><p>            Adrianna looked over to Tiberius and replied, “Sir, our efforts in Ladoria were crushed by the Trench Realm’s Honor Guards led by Lugia herself! Trajan was killed in action by Lugia personally! Douglas escaped with a few refugees and has led them to a coastal spot nearby. However, most of the Ladorians who agreed to support independence from the Trench Realm were either killed in battle, or arrested alive in the aftermath! I hid, hoping to ambush an enemy. However, it soon looked like they were about to crush us entirely. I then snuck off after I saw Trajan slain by Lugia. Everything had spiraled out of control! The operation was an absolute failure!”</p><p>            Tiberius was doing his best to process all that Adrianna had just told him. He then responded, “We need you to start from the beginning, Adrianna. It sounds like Trajan and the Ladorians who supported independence somehow seized the village and then they somehow brought down Lugia’s full force down on them. I am surprised to hear that she lead her soldiers in the flesh. Ho-oh would have never done something like that.”</p><p>            Kiri told Adrianna, “Clearly a lot happened since we last received a report from your team. I am glad that Douglas and some other refuges managed to escape the battle. Still, we did not want there to even be a battle this early on.”</p><p>            Earnest added, “You said that things had spiraled out of control. …Does that mean that things were escalated by Lugia and her followers alone, or was Trajan somehow also at fault.”</p><p>            Adrianna refocused herself and then told Tiberius, Kiri and Earnest the whole story in chronological order. She talked about how Trajan, herself and the other two agents had been following their planned orders to gauge loyalty to Lugia in Ladoria. How they were to try to turn as much of the populace against Lugia and her rule without sparking an open revolt. However, it sounded like things had indeed gotten out of hand from then on. Trajan had convinced Vladimir, the head of Ladoria’s Militia, to support independence. However, it seemed like those two had radicalized each other further and faster than had been expected. With more and more Ladorians caught up in the secessionist fervor to some extent, Lugia loyalists in the village had been being threatened, including the Mayor of Ladoria. Despite some voiced concerns from her and Douglas, Trajan had decided to fast-track Ladorian independence without permission from Tiberius even being asked for. Eventually, the whole fiasco had culminated in the Ladoria Free State being declared and a failed attempt made to take hostages from among the pro-Lugia citizenry.</p><p>            Tiberius, Kiri and Earnest all looked seriously concerned when Adrianna mentioned the, ultimately unsuccessful, plan to take civilian hostages that had been concocted by Trajan and Vladimir. Kiri mentioned, “I really hope that Trajan only agreed to that measure, even though it sounds like it failed, out of desperation. Besides, would Lugia and her soldiers have even cared if a few civilian loyalists were being held by the secessionists?”</p><p>            Adrianna admitted, “Douglas and I felt like we had no choice but to stand with Trajan at that point. Still, as plans were made to try and locate the refugees and round them up and defenses were being set up at Ladoria, Lugia and around forty of her best soldiers attacked our position. Most of their fighters were fully evolved and they even had a Wailord with them! They probably brought most of their crack, veteran troops for the battle. They were not taking the uprising lightly!”</p><p>            Tiberius then asked Adrianna, “So, this battle ended in a rout for Trajan’s forces and resulted in Lugia personally killing him, correct?”</p><p>            Adrianna nodded and replied, “Sir, the battle was a disaster for the LFS Militia! Commander Vladimir was killed by the Dragonite leader of the Honor Guards not long into the engagement. Trajan sort of came to his senses and ordered a full retreat after their Wailord rammed our barricade boulders and took out the center of our defenses. Trajan bravely stayed behind to engage Lugia personally. However, she killed him, despite being somewhat wounded herself. He did end up mentioning your name before he met his end. He really did believe in the cause, for what that is worth.”</p><p>            As Earnest and Kiri looked to their leader, Tiberius groaned angrily. He then snapped his large pincer claws rapidly for a moment. When the Crawdaunt calmed himself, he announced, “Trajan was a fool in the end! …However, he was still a fool who believed in the dream that we all must continue to fight for! He will not go unavenged! I consider it likely that Lugia’s agents will be searching for intelligence on our organization and our allies by now. We also now know that Lugia has become willing to enter combat in order to see her objectives completed. We must remember that despite this change in her behavior, she still cannot fight what she truly is any more than her departed brother could.”</p><p>            Kiri suggested, “I take it that we need a plan to get Lugia into a position where we can engage her without facing the full might of her, mostly aquatic, armies. Ideally, we need to lure her somewhere far away from any significant backup. She is our ultimate target after all. The less mortals who still follow her we have to fight, the better for us.”</p><p>            Earnest asked Tiberius, “What are we going to do now, boss?”</p><p>            Tiberius responded to his lieutenants, “We are going to try something along the lines of what Kiri suggested. Our Band of the Star has built up quite a reputation in various regions of the world. Many see us as heroes, or at least view us favorably. However, only our closest allies know of the new purpose that I have pointed us towards. Still, I think that I have a plan worth trying to execute. It will hopefully lead to us trapping and defeating the sister of Ho-oh. Without her, the Trench Realm will hopefully collapse politically and all of its settlements will have what they deserve, liberty. We will also be sending fresh agents into other communities in that vicinity, other than Ladoria, soon. However, we will be clearer about their orders. Also, they will not always be wearing our uniform.”</p><p>            Kiri, Earnest and Adrianna all nodded. Kiri then pointed out, “If we can defeat Lugia, then that will send a powerful message. I know that we have always used the metaphor of those new kids’ toys some human craftspeople make…. Dominoes, right? If mortals can defeat one Legendary Pokémon…”</p><p>            Tiberius smiled and finished, “Then we can defeat all of them in due time. They are nothing more than arrogant tyrants who can never understand those who they rule over and receive the worship of. Only those among them who were once mortal have the potential to be worthy of their existences. Suicune was the one who slew Ho-oh, after all. Now, she is living in Creekside Town on the Grand Island amongst mortals, trying not to receive special treatment on account of her immortality.”</p><p>            As Adrianna nodded and then left the command tent to go and get some rest, Tiberius and his two lieutenants turned to look at a sturdy-looking wooden weapon’s rack nearby a small red supply crate. The three weapons on the rack looked like the spears and javelins often used by human warriors. However, their shafts were made of a hard silvery metal with a small level on each of them. The heads of the weapons were not made of metal, rock, or bone. Instead, they were made of a reddish crystal shaped into serrated spearheads.</p><p>            Tiberius looked over at the three spears and finished, “Yes, we can bring Lugia down. She will be the first of many to fall!” He and his followers were not only going to avenge Trajan’s death at Ladoria, they were going to change the world.   </p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. A New Lead</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>---</p><p>The briefing room of the Honor Guards’ Headquarters:</p><p>            It had been three weeks since Lugia had initiated her subordinates’ and allies’ investigations into the Conspiracy headed up by the mysterious Pokémon known as Tiberius. In that time, especially considering that it had taken some time to rally the proper agents both above and beneath the waves and send them off on their investigative missions, little concrete information had come back to Lugia regarding her new enemies. She had even began to consider deploying into the field personally in order to aid her subordinates’ investigative efforts.</p><p>            However, despite the lack of new intelligence that had so far come back to her, Lugia had been told by her Palace Overseer Mera that Colonel Cicero had compiled some new reports for her that morning. Apparently, the recent reports painted a clearer, but still incomplete, picture of Tiberius’s organization.</p><p>            Upon having been informed by Mera of the arrival of new reports, Lugia had immediately departed for the Honor Guards’ Headquarters. Mera had been allowed to follow her Lady to the briefing room. They were to meet with Cicero and see what new intelligence he had compiled and readied for them.</p><p>            Now, Lugia and Mera were standing with Cicero in the briefing room where they had discussed the formation of the, now defeated, Ladoria Free State, earlier. The three-dimensional map table depicting the Trench Realm stood nearby where the trio of Pokémon were positioned.</p><p>            Lugia turned to Cicero and asked him, “Colonel, what news do you have for me? It sounds like we finally have some new intelligence on Tiberius’s Conspiracy. Would I be correct in saying that?”</p><p>            Cicero nodded affirmatively to Lugia, saying, “Yes, My Lady. Some of our agents, including those deployed by Zapdos and Moltres, have finally sent in their reports. Some of the information that they have gathered will almost certainly be a surprise to you and Mera, just as it was a surprise to me.”</p><p>            Lugia’s curiosity was now peaked. She ordered Cicero, “In that case, I insist that you begin your report at once! What have our agents gathered about Tiberius and his cohorts?”</p><p>            Cicero began, “To start, the ‘uniforms’ worn by Trajan and his fellow agitators match up perfectly with an organization known on the surface as the Band of the Star. It seems that the members of the Band of the Star wear bands with a single star on them as membership identifiers. Go figure.”</p><p>            Lugia asked, “So, what else do we now know about this ‘Band of the Star.’ I particularly want to learn what you said would be surprising about them.”</p><p>            Cicero quickly continued, “The truth is, Lady Lugia, the Band of the Star does not seem on the surface to be some shadowy conspiracy. The fact that they have a standardized uniform of sorts is proof of that. What they seem to be is a reasonably well respected and selective group of adventurers who have been operating primarily on the Tarkasian and Adalsian Continents for at least the last three years.”</p><p>            Lugia blinked rapidly. She then asked, “What sorts of deeds have these so-called adventurers done? Maybe their easily visible activities are some sort of elaborate cover for more sinister dealings?”</p><p>            Cicero told Lugia and Mera, “In terms of what the Band of the Star has accomplished, they first became well-known after helping in some cleanup operations against the infidel forces who remained after the Battle of Mount Galtia and the Second Battle of Shawlia. I never encountered the Band of the Star then. However, it seems that they slew and apprehended many of those blaspheming traitors. After that, they took on a number of jobs for the government of the human nation of Taleria located in the Tarkasian Interior. They seem to have gotten into the good graces of the King of Taleria and his court. After that, they took on a variety of other tasks. Everything from rescue operations, to disaster and famine relief to fighting hostile packs of wild Pokémon. Over a year ago and a quarter ago, they were reported to have driven a band of notorious and brutal slavers off of northern Tarkasia nearby the City of Finassus. Their most recent major activity of note was not far from here, actually. A few members of the Band of the Star acted as auxiliaries for the rebellion that Raikou led against the late Ho-oh. However, their role was pretty minor in that case. They primarily acted as rear-guard troops. They were hired to keep towns and cities the rebels had moved on from safe from loyalists, wild Pokémon and criminals while Raikou’s main army advanced south. It certainly sounds like these Pokémon have quite an impressive collective resume.”</p><p>            Lugia was quite surprised at the revelation that the Band of the Star were such accomplished adventurers who had clearly built up a strong positive reputation through their deeds. After thinking things over for a moment, she decided to ask Cicero, “Just to be sure that Trajan was really a member of the Band of the Star and not just pretending to be one for any reason, do you know if the Band’s leader is named Tiberius?”</p><p>            Cicero nodded and responded, “According to our reports, the Band of the Star is indeed led by a Crawdaunt named Tiberius. We know that the few flight-capable members of his organization are led by a Xatu. We also know that he has at least one other trusted lieutenant and that she is named Kiri. However, we do not yet have a definitive answer regarding what species she is a member of.”</p><p>            Mera actually smiled and added, “I knew that at least one Crawdaunt had to be involved with our enemies. It turns out that Tiberius himself is one.”</p><p>            Lugia chuckled a bit at Mera’s statement and then asked, “So, at least on the surface, Tiberius’s organization is above board and well-respected. That could be a problem for us. Still, unless this really is some kind of highly elaborate plan to frame the Band of the Star, it sounds like they are our enemies in this situation. They did aid the Phoenikan rebels after all, despite them also having been led by Legendary Pokémon.”</p><p>            Mera pointed out, “Lady Lugia, while it was Suicune, a fellow Legendary Pokémon, who slew Ho-oh, it sounds like the Band of the Star believes that his death was justified and good for the world. Maybe they are trying to instigate a revolution against you as their own version of Raikou’s, ultimately victorious, rebellion against Ho-oh? Based on what I heard Trajan had said to you when you faced him in battle, he believed that the reigns of more Legendary Pokémon need to be ended.”</p><p>            Lugia knew that Mera had a good point. She admitted, “That could be what they are planning. They seem to be unaware of my recent oath. Even if they are aware of it, maybe they are in denial of my vow’s sincerity? Either way, I would hope that there is a possibility, slim as it may be, that I could find a way to negotiate with them and have them call off their plans without any further casualties. If that proves to be impossible, than I would hope that we can defeat them outright. Colonel Cicero, what do you know about where the Band of the Star was last believed to be camped. They do not sound like they have a consistent home base, from what you have told me about them so far.”</p><p>            Cicero nodded and replied, “Well, that is actually the final major piece of intelligence that we were able to gather regarding the Band. It seems like they have recently made a new camp not far from a small logging village on the southwestern Tarkasian coastline. The village is apparently called Naoma. Our agents have learned that the village, while obviously not a part of the Trench Realm’s sovereign territory, does consider you to be their local patron deity, Lady Lugia.”</p><p>            As Lugia was processing what Cicero had just told her, Mera added, “That is fascinating. It seems as though the Lady Lugia has worshippers as far as Tarkasia! You would have to swim, fly or sail past the whole of Northern Adalsia in order to reach Naoma Village from here!”</p><p>            Lugia snapped out of her thoughts and told Cicero and Mera, “I am greatly concerned about the Band of the Star’s reported proximity to Naoma Village. They could be trying to turn the inhabitants against me, even though Naoma is not under my direct authority. Still, I am even more so concerned about the possibility that they simply might outright attack the village if they indeed view loyalty to myself as an affront of some kind. Even if some of their members may have viewed it as going too far, this is an organization whose agents were willing to take civilian hostages once before.”</p><p>            Cicero asked Lugia, “My Lady, what would you have us do about the potential situation in Naoma?”</p><p>            Lugia quickly replied, “I want you two to take command of things here. You will need to remain vigilant against further attempts to subvert civic order and cause more violence and chaos in this realm. I intend to use my superior speed and stamina to travel directly to Naoma personally. I actually think that I remember roughly where that village was. I might have visited it centuries ago. Once I reach Naoma, I will size up the situation and see if I can confront Tiberius and try to make him negotiate with me. Failing that, I will do what I can to defend Naoma and that vicinity from the Band of the Star! I might already be too late by now, so there is no time to waste! Tell Zapdos and Moltres of what we have discussed and where I am going so that they are made aware of the current situation.”</p><p>            As Lugia looked ready to swim up and out of the room and the Honor Guards’ Headquarters, Mera quickly asked her, “My Lady, are you sure about this course of action?”</p><p>            Lugia, sounding somewhat annoyed, replied, “Yes, of course I am! Lives could be on the line! If worse comes to worse, the Band of the Star will see what I am truly made of and what it means to threaten me, my realm and my worshippers. Who knows what damage they could do if left unchecked, even if their intentions are pure. They could be simply misguided, or truly evil. Either way, they cannot be allowed to continue on their current course! I can travel faster than anyone else in this realm, maybe expect for Zapdos. I need to leave now!”</p><p>            As Lugia swam out of the room at full speed, leaving Cicero and Mera behind her, she hoped to herself that she would be doing what she could to stop the Band of the Star even if she were not their current target. Still, the facts were the facts. How could she fulfill her oath to do some real good for the world if there were those out there who viewed her as a tyrant and were trying to defeat her and her loyal subjects? She hoped that she could end the conflict quickly and peacefully. However, she also knew that she would very possibly have to fight against Tiberius and his supporters. Either way, this was one challenge she would not back down from. She was not going to simply dispatch someone else to investigate Naoma. That was what Ho-oh would have done, after all.</p><p>            Soon, Lugia was swimming up and out of her trench home. As she passed by a number of settlements and Pokémon, she knew that she wanted to be a good ruler. She did not just want to be viewed as benevolent and wise. She wanted to actually exemplify those qualities. The idea that there were some reasonably powerful Pokémon out there who viewed her as a menacing tyrant offended her personally. Even with that said, she kept reminding herself that the Band of the Star needed to be stopped not just because they were a threat to her power and image. Even if they were indeed heroic adventurers who had just now set their sights on her, allowing their new crusade to continue would cause more than just social disruption. Lives would certainly be lost needlessly on a potentially grand scale if whatever Tiberius was planning came to fruition.</p><p>            Still determined to end the looming conflict, Lugia swam out of the trench and headed east at full speed. She was off to the Tarkasian Continent as quickly as she could travel.</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Naoma Village</h2></a>
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    <p>            Mostly swimming not far beneath the surface of the ocean and only resting when she found a good spot to do so, Lugia made a beeline heading east for the far-away continent of Tarkasia. That continent being a place that Lugia had not visited in quite some time. She would spend some time in the sky above the ocean so as to keep an eye out for landmarks that she could not easily spot from beneath the waves. Lugia was extremely fast both in the air and under the water when she wanted to be. However, she was slower and clumsier on land on the rare occasions where she had had to cross any significant distance on foot.   </p><p>As Lugia advanced eastward as fast as she could across vast stretches of ocean, she knew that she was not that far to the north of the Adalsian continent. She knew that at least one major port city located on the Northern Adalsian coast, which was considered a rival to Shawlia, considered her to be their patron. However, Lugia was not stopping to try and recruit more help. She had no time to waste in trying to reach the village of Naoma in case it was being threatened by the Band of the Star.</p><p>She had not even bothered to have an Honor Guard unit readied to go with her like she had for the assault on the, admittedly vastly closer, Village of Ladoria. Lugia’s one partial regret regarding going it alone had admittedly been not recruiting Zapdos and Moltres for her mission to Naoma. They were the only two Pokémon that she could think of who she was completely sure could match her speed in the air and who would follow her orders. Regardless, Lugia had made her choice and had been steadily advancing to the direct north of the Adalsian Coastline.</p><p>Lugia was getting closer and closer to the southwestern coast of the Tarkasian Continent. She knew that based on the landmarks that she was seeing every few hours. As a Legendary Pokémon and a child of Arceus, her memory was long. It was long enough that she was able to navigate over such an impressive distance without needing a map, or directions. That held true despite her having mostly stayed in her own realm for the past few hundred years.</p><p>Lugia was not exactly sure, based on her irregular resting periods, how many days it had been since she had departed from the Deep Palace. However, it was now morning and she was flying over the waters of the ocean. She had left Adalsia behind entirely some time ago. However, the good news now was that she was closing in on the southwestern coast of the Tarkasian Continent. Unlike the badlands and deserts that marked much of Northern Tarkasia, the southern portion of the landmass was reasonably verdant. Trees seemed to dot the nearby coastline just past the beach. What Lugia was more focused on was what looked like a small village that was mostly wooden in its construction. It sat on the coastline surrounded by a vast forest populated with many tall trees with dark green leaves.</p><p>As Lugia continued to close in on the village, she came to realize that it was indeed Naoma, based on her vague recollection of the settlement. She had almost arrived at her destination. Finally, she would hopefully see if she could confront Tiberius in the flesh. She would not behave like a coward, as Ho-oh had done so far too often over the course of his life. With any luck, she would not be too late to save Naoma from the Band of the Star, assuming that her fears turned out to be founded.</p><p>Lugia began her descent towards Naoma. As she did so, she was making no effort to hide her presence. She was also scanning the village carefully to see who she could see within it. She was looking out for anyone wearing a Band of the Star uniform in particular. If the rogue adventurers were inside of Naoma already, then they would need to be confronted quickly. Lugia did not want them taking civilian hostages in particular. That would put her in a very problematic position to be sure.</p><p>Much to her relief, Lugia did not see any Pokémon inside of Naoma who appeared to be wearing the uniform of the Band of Star. She was now closing in on the village rapidly. It looked like a few of the locals had seen her and were looking up at the incoming Sea Guardian with their mouths agape. Those who could were pointing at her with their various appendages. Some of them bowed to Lugia soon after catching sight of her. It seemed as though Naoma was still being occupied by villagers who saw her as their patron, considering the reception that Lugia was already receiving.</p><p>As Lugia was now flying over Naoma, she noticed the village square not far from a small series of docks. The square was simple in its design and used wood planks instead of stone pavement in many places. It seemed like wood was a far more common resource around here than stone. While the square was simple, it was quite large. In fact, the square was easily large enough for Lugia to carefully land nearby its center. She touched down as the present villagers were clearly in awe of her.</p><p>Lugia surveyed the twenty or so Pokémon of various species gathering around her at a distance. While most of them had bowed to Lugia, or made some other sort of deferential gesture, none of them seemed to have the courage to say anything to her for the moment.</p><p>As a few more residents of Naoma Village entered the square, Lugia decided to not wait any longer to say something. She asked the assembled local Pokémon, “Who among you is the recognized leader of this village? I know that my appearance here must seem sudden to all of you. However, I have come all the way here from my Trench Realm on important business. I want to speak with whoever is considered to be the leader of this settlement as soon as possible.”</p><p>Soon after Lugia was finished speaking, a male Psyduck wearing a green and brown sash dashed into the village square from a nearby wooden building. He came to a stop and stood directly in front of Lugia. He then looked up at her in awe along with the rest of the crowd. The Psyduck soon shook his head rapidly and told Lugia, “My name is Ronaldo, Your Ladyship. I am the, recently elected, mayor of this village. Would it be alright if I asked Your Magnificence to what do we owe the honor of your presence?”</p><p>Lugia actually chuckled a bit at being called her ‘Magnificence.’ She then replied, “I am here because I have been informed that a group calling themselves the Band of the Star have recently made a camp in this vicinity. Assuming that they have not left the region, I need to know what interactions the members of the Band have had with the inhabitants of this village.”</p><p>Ronaldo and the other residents of Naoma all started giving Lugia quizzical looks. Ronaldo then looked like he had remembered something. He told Lugia, “Your Ladyship, there is indeed a group of itinerant adventurers that call themselves the Band of the Star camped not far from here. They have been camped close to a nearby river that leads into the ocean for at least a few weeks, to my recollection. However, I am not sure what you would want with them. Some of their members recently accepted and completed a job from some of our loggers. They drove away a pack of wild Pokémon that had been harassing some of the loggers and making it harder for them to do their jobs in peace. Only a couple of members of their group at a time have come into our village to buy some supplies on occasion. …Come to think of it, a Xatu named Earnest, who said that he was a senior member of the Band, recently spoke with me. He told me not to worry about a small number of foreign oceanic Pokémon that had shown up down the coast somewhere not far from here. He said that they were refugees who were under the Band of the Star’s protection.”</p><p>Lugia quickly came to realize that the refugees Ronaldo had mentioned were almost certainly the escaped refugees from the fallen Ladoria Free State. It had turned out that the Band of the Star had not abandoned them. She was also somewhat surprised to hear that the members of the Band of the Star seemed to at least be playing the part of good neighbors to the citizens of Naoma. It sounded like they had not made any efforts to try and turn Naoma against her. It also seemed pretty clear that they had not invaded and occupied the village. Looking around at the residents of Naoma, they seemed to be mostly unevolved Pokémon. There was no evidence that Naoma even had a real militia, or any rough equivalent. If the members of the Band of the Star had wanted to seize the village, it seemed probable that combat veterans like them could do so with little effort. What was really going on here?</p><p>Lugia’s eyes narrowed a bit as she asked Ronaldo, “Are you completely sure that no members of the Band of Star have caused any trouble for you, or any of your fellows? I assure you that I need to hear the full truth regarding your relationship with them.”</p><p>Ronaldo looked over at his assembled citizens. When none of them spoke up, he told Lugia, “Well, I just do not think that any of them have caused any trouble for any of us as of now. We can point you in the direction of their camp, if you would like us to. They set it up in a large clearing nearby the river. It should only be around an hour at most from here to the northeast by foot. Of course, it should not take nearly as long for you, Lady Lugia.” Ronaldo was still looking quite confused. It seemed obvious that the source of his confusion was Lugia’s reasoning for being after the Band of the Star.</p><p>Lugia nodded at Ronaldo and his assembled citizens. As it was still morning at the moment, she said, “I will depart your town and rest on the outskirts for a few hours. However, once I have rested, I will set off for the camp occupied by the Band of the Star. One more question, did any of you see a Crawdaunt with the other members of the Band?”</p><p>An Eevee girl spoke up to tell Lugia, “My Lady, I believe that my father met with a male Crawdaunt named Tiberius earlier. My father was the one negotiating the deal that had some of the Band’s members drive away those hostile wild Pokémon that Mayor Ronaldo had mentioned earlier. It did seem like Tiberius was someone important within the Band. He was possibly even their leader.”</p><p>Lugia nodded as she now knew that it was likely that Tiberius himself would be at the campsite with his comrades. She briefly considered traveling to their camp at night. However, seeing as though she wanted to attempt to parlay with the Band of the Star first, such an action would probably be counterproductive to her initial goal. Lugia then informed the gathered citizens of Naoma Village, “Thank you for the information you have given me. I will say for now that I have very good reason to believe that the Band of the Star was at least indirectly responsible for what turned out to be a violent incident on the frontier of my realm. You should be wary of any and all of their members until such a time when I tell you otherwise. Also, please be wary of the recently-arrived oceanic Pokémon, as I believe that they are rebels against the Trench Realm who narrowly escaped the fall of their insurgent movement.”</p><p>As Ronaldo and his fellow residents of Naoma looked somewhat shocked regarding what Lugia had just told them, Lugia gave them a brief respectful nod and then trekked out of town. She was not followed by any members of the confused citizenry of Naoma.</p><p>Lugia found a place to lay down and rest for a bit still easily within sight of Naoma Village. She did not intend to sleep, as she knew that the Band of the Star was camped reasonably close to her current position. As Lugia allowed herself to rest a bit, she knew that the situation was still a bit suspicious. Was the Band of the Star’s presence in the area a coincidence? Or, was there something else going on here? What were the rogue adventurers planning? Hopefully, Lugia would learn the truth soon enough. By the end of that day, she was going to go and see if she could confront Tiberius.</p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Confrontation at the Camp</h2></a>
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    <p>            After a brief rest not far from the Village of Naoma, Lugia decided that it was time for her to go locate the camp currently being occupied by the Band of the Star. The villagers of Naoma and their mayor, Ronaldo, had not disturbed her during her rest not far outside of their home. Lugia was well aware that she had not been as pleasant as she could have been with Naoma’s villagers. She made a mental note to apologize to them later. They did view her as their patron after all. She had mainly been so brief with them because she had been so confused regarding their, so far positive, interactions with the Band of the Star. What were the Band’s members and their leader up to?</p><p>            Lugia decided that she was not going to wait long to figure out exactly what Tiberius and his supporters were planning. She stretched out her wings and then took off into the air. Heading in the direction that she had been told the Band of the Star’s camp was located, she scanned the forest nearby Naoma from the air.</p><p>            Considering how fast she could fly, despite her great size when compared to most avian Pokémon, it did not take Lugia very long to spot the camp. It sat nearby a river in a large clearing. The clearing looked to be easily big enough for her to land in it. As Lugia closed in on the camp, she looked down into it and scanned for anyone who could be there. There was thick tree cover around the clearing, which hampered Lugia’s ability to view that vicinity clearly. Also, the tents arranged in the clearing could be used for concealment. With all of that noted, Lugia could not see any Pokémon in the clearing, or close to it.</p><p>            As Lugia dived in closer to the clearing to try and get a better look at the camp, she saw a single Crawdaunt poking their head out from the largest tent. Lugia realized that this could very well be Tiberius himself.</p><p>            As the Crawdaunt partially emerged from the tent, revealing the upper portion of a backpack of sort kind, Lugia thought about how Tiberius and his supporters were so intent on challenging her. She remembered of all the chaos they had recently caused in Ladoria. Who knew how many more lives could end up being taken and how much destruction would be wreaked if the Band of the Star continued on their apparent current course.</p><p>            As she continued her descent towards the camp, Lugia made a snap decision. No matter how many of members of the Band of the Star there were in the immediate area, she was going to make a dramatic entrance. These malcontents were going to see her coming anyway. It was not like she had been trying to be stealthy, assuming that she could even be stealthy out of the water.</p><p>            Lugia targeted the center of the campsite right in front of the tent that the Crawdaunt was peeking out of. She then landed gracefully, but heavily, feet first. She glared down at the nearby Crawdaunt and stood up as high as she could. She was focused on him for the moment as he was the only occupant of the camp that she had seen from the air. With any luck, there would be no need for her to fight anyone. Still, she was going to try and end the brewing conflict with all deliberate haste one way or another.</p><p>               As Lugia focused on the Crawdaunt who was still partially concealed by the large tent he was peering out of. She sternly asked him, “Are you the one known as Tiberius, the leader of the Band of the Star? If you are him, then I would have words with you.”</p><p>            The Crawdaunt seemed to chuckle a bit. He then responded, “Why yes, that would be me. It seems as though word of my deeds has spread as far as the Trench Realm.”</p><p>            Lugia’s eyes narrowed as she asked Tiberius, “Were you the one who ordered the Dragalge who went by Trajan to stir up unrest in the Village of Ladoria?”</p><p>            Tiberius took on a more serious posture this time. He told Lugia, “Once again, what you say is true. Trajan went too far in the end, I must admit. I am also well aware that you did away with him personally. I will tell you right now that I was surprised to hear that you engaged the Ladoria Free State’s Militia yourself, rather than rely purely on your mortal soldiers.”</p><p>            Lugia’s eyes continued to narrow as she asked Tiberius, “I am not sure why my personal deployment on the battlefield surprised you. Still, I am here in the flesh now. I want to know right now why you tried to stoke the fires of rebellion against me, Tiberius. What did I, or any other Legendary Pokémon, ever do to you? Why are you doing this?”</p><p>            Tiberius chuckled again and responded, “It is not at all about what any Legendary Pokémon have done to me, or even anyone who I care about. It is not about fame, or fortune, or glory. I already have ample amounts of those things, much as I may continue trying to seek them out. For me this is about changing the world!”</p><p>            As Lugia waited for Tiberius to finish, she thought she heard rustling in the nearby bushes and trees. However, Tiberius commanded her attention as he continued, “Creatures such as yourself have far too much power, ‘My Lady.’ You may be immortal and powerful. However, those lucky, for you, accidents of birth give you no right to rule over anybody else! You also have no right to receive religious worship from anybody! The time for change is coming and I intend to be an agent of that change! You are a tyrant, just like your late brother Ho-oh, who fell to the jaws one of the few immortals who has had the decency to repent her sins!”</p><p>            Lugia angrily shouted back at Tiberius, “Ho-oh and I were not the same! He acted like a tyrant, but that is not who I want to be! I want to be someone who does good, not evil!”</p><p>            Tiberius began to emerge from his command tent as the rustling in the trees grew louder and a number of other Pokémon emerged from their tents and some bushes. He then declared, “Ho-oh did not just act like a tyrant, he WAS a tyrant! You are his sister and his kin! You cannot be trusted, no matter what protests you make! It is time for you to be taken down a peg, as should have been done long ago!”</p><p>            Lugia now saw that at least fifteen other Pokémon had emerged and were now surrounding her. From the nearby trees, a male Xatu led five other airborne Pokémon out to circle above Lugia. Lugia said to Tiberius, “I see that you do not intend to negotiate.”</p><p>            Tiberius seemed to smile. He then responded, “You are correct, ‘My Lady.’ The villagers of Naoma will soon see that their precious patron is no goddess! We will defeat you and end your reign!”</p><p>            Lugia realized that the nearby village could very well be in danger from the Band of the Star. Now that she had arrived to confront them, Tiberius and his cohorts were likely going to drop their helpful façade. Even though her enemies had gotten the drop on her and she had played into their hands, she could not just flee now. She then saw Tiberius fully emerge from his command tent. He drew a long metal-hafted spear tipped with a jagged reddish crystal that had been strapped to his pack. She also saw a female Lucario among the Pokémon surrounding her who had also drawn such a weapon.</p><p>            Lugia was considering asking what the strange spears were when Tiberius pointed his weapon forward and shouted, “This is it, everyone! Today, we will defeat a first-generation Legendary Pokémon and show the world that it is indeed possible for mortals to do so!”</p><p>            There was clearly no stopping a fight now. As badly outnumbered as she was, Lugia knew that she could not back down now. She would defeat, or drive off, Tiberius’s forces and prove their belligerence to the residents of Naoma. Scanning for an easy first target, Lugia saw a Delphox emerging from a small tent and pointing her fiery stick-wand at her. Lugia rapidly conjured a series of large boulders and flung them into the Delphox and her tent. Both of them were quickly smashed by the rapid barrage.</p><p>            As Lugia was unsure if she had killed, or simply knocked out, the enemy Delphox, she rapidly lifted into the air and hovered just above the camp. She hoped that the downdraft from her flapping wings would buffet and distract her enemies.</p><p>            The enemy Lucario brandished her spear as her red eyes flashed. She then called out, “Stay split up, guys! Don’t let her target more than one or two of us at once!”</p><p>            Tiberius nodded in agreement with his Lucario subordinate as Lugia realized that her Aura Sense might have clued the Band in to her arrival before they could have even sighted her in the sky. Tiberius responded, “Good call, Kiri! Now, attack her before she can take any more of us down!” Tiberius then spat out a rapid-fire barrage of bubbles into Lugia. His attack hit her harder than she had expected it to.</p><p>            The Xatu led his flying squad in to attack Lugia. He sent out a blast of noxious wind around his body which staggered Lugia in the air. He then drew his own crystal-tipped spear from his pack using telekinetic force. The Xatu’s followers blasted Lugia with their own ranged attacks as they flew around her, keeping a wide berth.</p><p>            As a barrage of ranged attacks flew up at Lugia from the ground, she dodged a few of them, but was hit by most of them. Realizing that Tiberius was advancing towards her with his strange spear in his pincers, Lugia decided to try to take him down in the hopes that that would demoralize and panic his allies. Lugia sent a mighty Aeroblast down into Tiberius. The concentrated winds blew the Band’s command tent away in an instant. However, Tiberius himself was hardier than Lugia had hoped. He braced himself and withstood Lugia’s strongest attack. He then kept up advancing on her, weapon in hand.</p><p>            Kiri looked up at Lugia and called out, “I’m locked on to her now!” She did a dramatic twirl and then hurled her crystal tipped spear at Lugia.</p><p>            Lugia was busy trying to evade the attacks from other members of the Band of the Star. She ended up being struck by the spear right in the upper chest. As the weapon embedded in her chest, Lugia felt her intrinsic energy leaving her in a very painful way. The spear’s head began to glow brightly as Lugia screamed in pain. She used one of her wing-hands to rip out the spear and throw it to the ground. However, that forced her to land. She also had failed to destroy the spear and its crystal tip still glowed.</p><p>            Tiberius called out, “Excellent work, Kiri! Now, let’s keep her grounded and take her down! Earnest, you and your team hit her from above!” He then advanced on Lugia with his allies covering him.</p><p>            The Xatu, Earnest, slashed into Lugia’s back with his spear, as his squad bombarded her with weaker attacks. Lugia cried out in pain again and then tried to maintain her focus. As Earnest’s spear’s head began to glow, Lugia was starting to feel weaker. She now realized that the crystal spears were draining out her energy into their own heads. That was how they were weakening her so quickly.</p><p>            As Kiri ran around Lugia to try to recover her spear, the Sea Guardian conjured up another set of boulders. She refused to give in so easily. Earnest evaded the flying rocks. However a Pidgeot and a Noctowl who were subordinates of his each got knocked to the ground by an incoming boulder. At minimum, they were out of this fight.</p><p>            Lugia was being bombarded by attacks from over fifteen Pokémon now. While a few of them failed to do much to her, many of them still hit hard. She was fading fast. As Lugia was refocusing herself on Tiberius, she realized that he had almost reached her with his spear in his claws. She fired off a second Aeroblast at him. However, he blocked the blast of wind with a well-timed shield of protective greenish energy.</p><p>            Even though his energy shield was consumed by Lugia’s Aeroblast, Tiberius leapt into the air and sank his spear into Lugia’s lower belly. As he withdrew the weapon, the head of which was now glowing, and landed back on the ground. Lugia let out a cry of anguish and fell to her knees.</p><p>            The members of the Band of the Star now held off on attacking Lugia, but were watching her carefully. Lugia’s mind was racing as Kiri picked up her spear. She was close to blacking out and unable to summon up any more attacks. Somehow, these well trained and well equipped mortals had beaten her.</p><p>            As Lugia tried to keep herself propped up with her wing-hands, Tiberius seemed to grin. He then exclaimed, “All according to plan, everyone!” He then turned to Lugia and asked her, “Now, ‘My Lady,’ do you see that you have been beaten? What do you have to say for yourself? Do you see that you are the way of the past and that your reign is now at its end?”</p><p>            Lugia, tears in her eyes and many regrets in her mind, tried to tell her victorious foe, “I want to be a better ruler and… You do not understand me!”</p><p>            Tiberius chuckled as his comrades were mostly in high spirits while some of them, led by Kiri, checked on their allies who had been felled by Lugia. He then told the defeated Sea Guardian, “You will face justice soon enough, you tyrant. Now, I want to hear you say something. I want you to surrender to us formally right now.”</p><p>            As Tiberius and Earnest brandished their glowing spears, Lugia realized that she had to comply. She would almost certainly be killed otherwise. She then glared at Tiberius and said two words that she never though she would say to anyone, “I surrender.”</p><p>            Tiberius simply responded, “Good to hear!” He then jabbed Lugia in the stomach with his spear one more time. She blacked out quickly as the weapon was being withdrawn from her gut. She did not even have the time to wonder what fate her victorious enemies had in store for her.</p>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. The Trial</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            As Lugia began to stir, her eyes began to flutter open and shut. She started to breath in and out more deeply and heard what sounded like the clinking of chains. She began to remember what had happened to her. She remembered how the members of the Band of the Star had used both conventional attacks and bizarre spear-like weapons with crystal heads to defeat her in combat. She had only taken down three enemies and wounded the Band’s Leader, Tiberius. The rogue adventurers had won their fight handily.</p><p>Lugia knew that she had fallen exactly into the Band of the Star’s trap. She had shown up in this region believing that the villagers of Naoma were under threat from the Band. However, her enemies had not yet bothered to even harass the locals who revered her until she had arrived in their camp. She had acted in haste in coming here and had paid the price of being defeated for it. Now, she needed to find out where she was and what was going to become of her.</p><p>It did not take Lugia long to realize that she still felt very weak. Too weak to move very much and certainly too weak to conjure up any attacks. She also quickly came to realize, as she regained consciousness, that a series of three lengths of chain held a large metal bit in her mouth, preventing her from speaking. Also, long lengths of heavy chain bound her arm-like wings to her sides. Her ankles were shackled and a third shackle connected to the two leg irons restrained her tail. Somehow she had been roughly stood up while heavily bound. Lugia knew that even these heavy restraints would be unable to hold her for long if she was at her full power. She wondered how long it would take for her to recover enough that she could try to break free. Still, she did not intend to fight the remaining members of the Band of the Star if she was able to escape her bonds. She would have to retreat and find some kind of reinforcements in order to take Tiberius and his cohorts down.</p><p>Lugia was now able to keep her eyes open for long enough that she could scan the area that she was being held in. It did not take her long to realize that she had somehow been dragged all the way into the center of the Naoma Village square. It seemed to be late afternoon now. The members of the Band of the Star who had defeated her had taken positions around her with Tiberius and Kiri not far in front of her. The Xatu Earnest and three of his subordinates were flying in a circle above the square.</p><p>Also in the square, but being kept back and away from Lugia were a number of the locals who inhabited Naoma. Mayor Ronaldo the Psyduck was standing nearby Tiberius and Kiri. A number of his citizens were behind him. All of them were looking, confused, concerned and even a bit horrified. Lugia began to realize that Tiberius and his supporters had brought her into the square while she was unconscious because they wanted to show the residents of Naoma that their patron was vulnerable and had been defeated.</p><p>Lugia began to indignantly struggle against her restraints, still humiliated by how thoroughly her enemies had defeated her. She had been so foolish and easily roused to anger. She was clearly not living up to her reputation in any way right now. Still, now that Lugia was on display for the shocked citizens of Naoma to view, what was Tiberius going to do with her? He had her helpless for the moment. However, she was reasonably sure that her full power would return to her in due time, even though she had been drained by the crystal spears and bombarded with other attacks. Hopefully, due time would be a couple of hours at most. Still, Lugia wondered when she would have an opening to try and escape once she was recovered enough to attempt to break out of her restraints.</p><p>As Lugia was now pretty much fully conscious, but still exhausted, she saw Kiri turning around partially to look up at her. The Lucario, who was still carrying her crystal spear, told Tiberius, “She is awake. I suggest that we begin the proceedings now. You did say earlier that you did not want to give her too much time to recover.”</p><p>Tiberius nodded as he was also still holding his crystal spear. Both his weapon and Kiri’s were still emanating a bright glow from their heads. He then announced, “Very well, the prisoner is awake and most likely knows where she is. We shall now commence…”</p><p>As his citizens all looked to him, Ronaldo stepped forward and angrily said to Tiberius, interrupting him, “Mr. Tiberius, you refused to answer me before. Still, I and my fellow citizens of Naoma demand to know what is the meaning of this!”</p><p>Tiberius did not seem as angry at Ronaldo, as Lugia was worried that he would be. He responded, sounding almost happy, “These proceedings are to celebrate the liberation of this community, and soon all of those like it, from the delusion of worshiping the prisoner. You called her a ‘Lady’ and believed that she was some sort of divine figure out of ignorance. Now, you have the privilege of seeing firsthand that she has been defeated. You can hate us, or you can thank us. Still, do not try to interfere. Me and my team would hate to have to knock any of your citizens out. Today, the tyrant Lugia will be judged by mortals for her misdeeds. She will then be punished accordingly.”</p><p>As Ronaldo stepped back in confusion and shock, Lugia struggled against her chains in vain as she was carefully watched by Tiberius’s allies. She now knew that Tiberius and his supporters had dragged her into the village square to put on a show of sorts for the intimidated citizens of Naoma. They were going to put her on trial as if they had the authority to judge her for anything. Lugia realized that Tiberius and his followers had to be truly arrogant for them to be doing what they were doing. Still, they had beaten her, albeit with the aid of their mysterious weapons.</p><p>Lugia wondered what the crystal spears were made of, who had made them and how they functioned. Was there anything else that they could do that she had not yet seen? She knew that humans warriors often used weapons akin to them, but without the crystal spearheads and their unique power-draining capabilities. Still, it was very likely that Tiberius had procured the three weapons, or somehow had them manufactured, with the intent of trying to “level the playing field” against Legendary Pokémon. At least his whole band did not wield those weapons. Only their three main leaders seemed to do so.</p><p>Now, Tiberius looked up at Lugia and said, “Lugia, self-proclaimed ruler of the Trench Realm and Guardian of the Seas. You have ruled, unelected and unquestioned over a significant number of mortal Pokémon for centuries and received veneration and admiration from countless others for almost as long. You have done very little for your followers and worshippers, such as the citizens of this fine village, however. You have taken certain privileges both in your domain and abroad without ever questioning the idea that you deserved them. You have mostly sat idly by why your brother, Ho-oh, ruled the Island of Phoenika with an iron talon. You stopped Ho-oh from annexing the Island of Falira, but only because Moltres, a vassal and admirer of yours was and is ruling that island in your stead. You have recently given a significant amount of your unearned tax money back to the communities that make up your realm. However, lets’ be honest here, you only did that because you knew what the righteous immortal Suicune did to Ho-oh. You had to, at least subconsciously, be afraid of a similar revolt in your own domain. You were giving that money back from your treasury, where it probably was not doing all that much, because you wanted to look benevolent. You just wanted to dissuade your subjects from realizing that they are better off without you and ending your reign by force!”</p><p>Lugia was glaring daggers into Tiberius now. He was ascribing negative motivations to her left and right. He was doing all that he could to make her appear to be a villain without outright making events up entirely out of whole cloth. Still, he had a real point about how she had done nothing to ease the plight of the Phoenikans under the late Ho-oh. Tiberius had also not mentioned her recent oath to try and become a better ruler and Pokémon, assuming that he was even aware of it.</p><p>Tiberius chuckled seeing how angrily Lugia was looking down at him. He then continued, “I see that the prisoner is upset that I am exposing her to the citizens of this lovely village. Now, I will also add that when the Village of Ladoria on the frontier of the Trench Realm recently sought independence, Lugia personally led a force that crushed that rebellion. To be fair, my band was responsible for the generation of the initial unrest in Ladoria. There was a significant overstep of bounds that was almost made by a late associate of mine in that process. However, Lugia and her loyalists still took down that rebellion brutally and did not allow Ladoria to secede and be treated as a free and independent state.”</p><p>Earnest turned to his boss from the sky and asked him, “Tiberius, is there anything else that you have to say to condemn our prisoner for her misdeeds? We do not want to risk giving her a chance to recover fully.”</p><p>Tiberius responded, “In closing, I believe that Lugia here has abused political and religious power that she had no inherent right to wield in the first place. She is a petty tyrant who just has a better reputation than Ho-oh had and pays more attention to propaganda than he did. She and those like her are a menace to civilized society! The world will be much better off once the Age of the Legendaries is brought to a close! I will now pronounce the prisoner’s sentence well before she can attempt to escape.”</p><p>            As Tiberius took a deep breath, Kiri looked Lugia in the eyes and told her leader, “Tiberius, if is a trial, then the prisoner should have at least one chance to defend herself, her actions and her inaction. Shouldn’t we at least grant her that?”</p><p>            Tiberius sighed, mumbled and grumbled at bit and then said, “Fine, we will allow her to say a few words in her defense before I proclaim her sentence. Earnest, remove her gag, please.”</p><p>            Earnest nodded and then flew close to the back of Lugia’s head. He then used precise telekinetic force to unlock Lugia’s metal gag. The bit and its attached chains were carried by the same psychic energy to the ground, where they lay at Lugia’s feet.</p><p>            Lugia looked out at her captors and at the citizens of Naoma. She knew that her best chance here was to try and disprove the image of her as a selfish tyrant that Tiberius had been trying to fabricate. She told her captors and the onlooking villagers, “Let me say first that I am NOT my late brother. I have never instituted the sorts of policies among my subjects that he did among his. I have not asked anyone to build gaudy statues of me, or other monuments to my ego. When I saw Ho-oh dead, I came to deeply regret that I had not tried to convince him to become a better Pokémon, or try to aid the inhabitants of Phoenika more directly failing that. He got what he deserved, as much as I am loathe to say it. After Ho-oh died, I made a public vow that I would try to become a better ruler and a better Pokémon in general. That is why I refunded all of that money. I am still figuring out how to be better. I am not always succeeding at that goal, to be honest. However, I have no intention of giving up my quest for self-improvement.”</p><p>            Tiberius actually laughed as Lugia finished her statement in her defense. Kiri looked at him and said, “You should know that I sense no dishonesty coming from her.”</p><p>            Tiberius then pointed his crystal spear at Lugia and declared, “Kiri, she is an ancient creature with a warped mind! Even with your Aura Sense, she cannot be trusted!” He then advanced on Lugia and aimed his weapon at a gap in the chains binding her upper body.</p><p>            As Kiri and the villagers looked on nervously and Ronaldo looked about to panic from indecision, Tiberius shouted, “I do not believe anything that you just said! You cannot change what you are! Lugia, in the name of the mortals of this world, human and Pokémon alike, I sentence you to death!”</p><p>            Lugia staggered back in her chains as Kiri asked Tiberius, “You are going to kill her?”</p><p>            As Tiberius continued to advance on the chained and fatigued Lugia and the villagers of Naoma all looked horrified, the Crawdaunt told his Lucario lieutenant, “She is too dangerous to be kept alive! In a few hours at most, she will be able to break out of these chains. This is indeed a grim thing to do. However, I am going to carry out the sentence I declared myself. I will become the first recorded mortal to slay a Legendary Pokémon!”</p><p>            Tiberius continued to advance on Lugia as his followers looked mostly resolute. They were not going to question Tiberius’s decision to take Lugia’s life himself. Lugia was not even sure what to say to the Crawdaunt, who seemed bound and determined to execute her. She could not believe that this conclusion was just. She was trying to become someone better and yet these upstarts believed that they could judge her and even put her to death. Still, maybe in some way this was her being punished for her sins, even though Tiberius had exaggerated them to some degree. She always should have been doing more for the world with her power. She had allowed herself to be put in a position where the Band of the Star could villainize her. Still, was she really going to have to die here for her mistakes?</p><p>            Lugia was unsure if she should even consider pleading for her life. Normally, she would consider that sort of thing to be far beneath her. Still, these were extraordinary circumstances to be sure. As Tiberius seemed to be getting ready to leap up and impale the chained Sea Guardian on his mysterious weapon, Kiri’s aura sensing organs on the back of her head began to wave up and down wildly and rapidly.</p><p>            Kiri looked up and called out, “Damn it! I was too focused on Lugia before! We have at least seventeen hostiles coming out of the sky at us! The two auras at the head of the formation are really strong! There are also hostiles approaching at the edge of my range on the water!”</p><p>            Tiberius turned around and looked up as his followers took up battle positions. He shouted in rage, “No! Fuck! Lugia was followed here!”</p><p>            Everyone in the square heard the voice of Moltres, the Lady of Falira, shouting down at Tiberius, “GET AWAY FROM HER!” They then saw Moltres and Zapdos diving towards the square with Cicero and a Braviary right behind them. At least twelve other airborne Pokémon were following them into the action. As some of the villagers of Naoma cheered and some of them even looked ready to fight Tiberius’s comrades, Lugia was really glad that she had been disobeyed, at least implicitly. Somehow, even though she had not asked for them, reinforcements were on their way.</p>
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<a name="section0012"><h2>12. The Battle of Naoma Village</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            As Lugia stood chained in the village square of Naoma in the late afternoon, she saw a flight consisting of over fifteen Pokémon diving at full speed down towards her, her captors and the assembled villagers. As Zapdos and Moltres led the flying mortals behind them down into battle, Lugia recognized Moltres’s Braviary consort Sir Corran following her. The Dragonite Colonel Cicero was closely following Zapdos. The small airborne force behind them consisted of a few flying Honor Guards and members of the Falira Militia. They all looked tired, but ready for action. What mattered to Lugia was that, no matter how they had gotten to Naoma so soon after her own arrival, they were here now to save her from execution.</p><p>Lugia was doing her best to recover some energy so as to try and break out of her restraints, or even just attack one of her captors. However, it would still take a bit for her to muster the required power to unleash any of her mighty attacks. She then heard Tiberius, ordering, “Split up and prepare for battle! Kiri, Earnest draining spears at the ready. Use your spears’ beam functions if necessary!”</p><p>As the members of the Band of the Star began to split up and their three leaders readied their draining spears, Ronaldo, the Psyduck mayor of Naoma Village, looked like he was summoning up all of his courage. He then turned to his citizens and told them, “Everyone, feel free to flee if you must. However, I am not going to allow our Lady to be put to death! Now that help is here, I am going to fight along with the reinforcements!”</p><p>Ronaldo blasted Kiri with a stream of water as soon as he turned back to the Band of the Star. The attack barely looked to injure her. However, at least ten villagers formed up behind their mayor as the rest of them scattered.</p><p>Lugia was worried for Ronaldo and his villagers. They looked ready to risk their lives to help save her now that they saw what the Band of the Star was really up to. However, she then saw Tiberius aiming his draining spear up at Zapdos. As Earnest led the Band’s flyers up into battle and ranged attacks began to fly from both sides, Tiberius pulled the level on his spear and fired a beam of reddish energy from it into Zapdos, who recoiled back in pain, but was still airborne. Kiri fired on Moltres with her spear. The attack was evaded, as Moltres rolled out of the way of the energy beam. The spearheads of Tiberius and Kiri’s weapons had dimmed after opening fire, but they still glowed faintly.</p><p>Lugia shouted, “Target the spear wielders! They are the enemy commanders! Also, protect the villagers on the ground! They will not last against the combat veterans of the Band for long without help!”</p><p>Zapdos nodded to Lugia and then blasted all of Earnest’s flying associates from the sky with a mighty discharge of electricity. Earnest was sent careening back into the ground and landed next to Tiberius. However, he was still conscious.</p><p>Kiri’s eyes glowed red as attacks flew from all sides. She seemed ready to throw her draining spear as she had done to badly injure Lugia in the last battle. As she did so, she called out, “Our air cover is down! The enemies on the water are engaging some of our allies now! We might be in trouble, Tiberius!”</p><p>Tiberius called back, “We cannot fail here! I will see Lugia dead! Do not let the enemy leaders get to the center of our formation! We do not want them doing to our ground forces what they did to our air support!”</p><p>As Earnest hauled himself up and off of the ground, Cicero led his troops closer to the square. He conjured a localized twister imbued with draconic energy which stunned and wounded two members of the Band who were trying to hold Ronaldo and his villagers back.</p><p>With Corran at the lead, some of the airborne reinforcements were now dive-bombing some of the members of the Band of the Star. As Lugia had ordered, they were trying to protect the weaker villagers who were engaging Tiberius’s followers on the ground. Still, a couple of Ronaldo’s citizens had been badly wounded already and the female Eevee Lugia had seen earlier had been knocked unconscious in the skirmish.</p><p>Moltres was now diving on Kiri, as the Lucario held her ground with her draining spear in front of Lugia. Kiri smiled and then began to hurl her weapon at the incoming Lady of Falira. However, Moltres returned the smile and then breathed out a column of fire which struck the spear’s head just as the weapon was leaving Kiri’s hands. The draining spear exploded as Moltres pulled up. Kiri was knocked unconscious from the mighty blast of raw energy.</p><p>Tiberius shouted, “Kiri!” He then pelted Moltres with rapid-fire bubbles angrily while still holding his weapon at the ready. Earnest was still trying to muster the strength to get airborne after how badly he had been shocked by Zapdos.</p><p>Zapdos now dove down towards Tiberius. He told the Crawdaunt, “You have done enough damage, you foolish malcontent!” He then smirked with his beak and called down a singular bolt of lightning into the head of Tiberius’s draining spear.</p><p>Lugia could not help but smile as the second of the three known draining spears violently exploded. Tiberius was sent flying back towards where Earnest was standing. He was still conscious, but was terribly singed by the detonation of energy.</p><p>Lugia called out, “Those weapons are powerful! They are what allowed these rogue adventurers to capture me so easily. Now, we know what their weakness is, the same crystal heads that give them their unique capabilities!”</p><p>Earnest told the wounded Tiberius, “This is bad, sir! Kiri is out and she is our main healer! They have more help on the way as well!”</p><p>As Tiberius used one of his short-lived energy shields to defend himself from a diving attack from Corran, he responded, “I know! Still, we cannot allow Lugia to slip through our fingers like this!”</p><p>Earnest looked down at his own draining spear and told Tiberius, “We will not be able to execute her today! Still, this does not have to end now! If we all get defeated in this battle, our mission of global change will almost certainly be a failure!”</p><p>While Tiberius looked to be pondering what Earnest had just said, Cicero had dived into the fray and knocked a hostile Druddigon away from two villagers with an energized tail strike. The enemy went down as he slammed into a building.</p><p>Ronaldo called out, “I see a few more Pokémon heading our way! I think that we will carry the day! You are almost safe, Lady Lugia!” He then narrowly hit the deck to dodge a series of bubbles sent his way by the enraged Tiberius.</p><p>Cicero called out, “Hopefully Captain Bubba has blockaded the port and deployed some more reinforcements towards the main battle! Still, keep Lady Lugia and the villagers protected until all enemies are down, or have surrendered!”</p><p>Zapdos sent a series of boulders flying into a Torkoal members of the Band of the Star, smashing into his shell and removing his from the fight. Moltres dove in close to Lugia, ready to shield her from any possible enemy attacks while she was still bound and helpless. Lugia just wished that she could be doing more as she watched those who had been about to murder her being pushed back.</p><p>Two members of the Band of the Star, a Cloyster and a Toxapex, were being chased into the square by a trio of Honor Guards. A Kabutops Sergeant led an Omastar Corporal and an Octillery Private forward to engage the fleeing foes.</p><p>The Toxapex called out, “The enemy has seized the harbor! They have a freaking Wailord in command there! Douglas is leading the few remaining refugees away! However, the rest of our allies have already fallen in battle!”</p><p>Tiberius cringed in horror as the Honor Guard Kabutops charged his Toxapex subordinate and hacked into his back tentacles. The Octillery following her leader into the fight sniped the Toxapex down with a beam of psychic energy from her mouth.</p><p>The Cloyster member of the Band of the Star whirled around. However, the Honor Guard Omastar conjured a series a boulders and launched them into his foe. The Cloyster’s shell was smashed in by the rocks, eliminating him quickly.</p><p>Tiberius stammered, “No… the Band is being crippled! Kiri… everyone! How many have we lost already?” Only five other members of the Band remained in the fight and they were all badly wounded. They had knocked out two more villagers non-lethally. However, they had failed to defeat any of the more experienced airborne fighters who had arrived to save Lugia.</p><p>            As Zapdos dived in and took down a Meganium member of the Band of the Star using a powerful beak strike, Earnest stood up and ordered, “Everyone still standing, to me! I am initiating escape protocol three for anyone who does not want to die, or be captured, here! Tiberius, this is not over! We will avenge our fallen members! We have other supporters and allies out there!”</p><p>            After Tiberius, who was still looking over the square turned battlefield in shock and horror, nodded slowly, he looked up at Lugia and Moltres and angrily told the two of them, “You both will pay for this dearly! Moltres of Falira, we were considering sparing you. However, your defense of the tyrant Lugia has placed you on the wrong side of history! Your reign will also be ended in due time!”</p><p>            Moltres retorted, “Like I care what a rogue like you says about me! I will defend the Lady Lugia to the death if I must!” Tiberius then narrowly blocked a series of boulders that Moltres had flung at him with one of his energy shields.</p><p>            The four other surviving and conscious members of the Band of the Star in the area then all ran to Earnest and Tiberius. As attacks flew past them, Lugia called out, “They are trying to escape! Stop them!”</p><p>            Before any more attacks could be sent at the six Band of the Star Pokémon, they all held appendages and Tiberius shouted, “Earnest, get us out of here! We will have to abandon the camp… and Kiri…” Earnest glowed with green light and then a sphere of the same energy surrounded him and his five comrades. They were shot up into the sky and teleported to an unknown location.</p><p>            Cicero shouted, “Arceus Dammit! They got away! Still, we took down most of them. We need to get our Lady free and find and out what exactly happened here.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded and ordered, feeling awkward doing so while she was still bound tightly, “Please attend to the wounded and fallen villagers. Make sure that none of them perish for their bravery. Then, secure any defeated foes who are still breathing. We will want to see what they know when they wake up. Also, someone should go loot their camp for documents and other resources before night falls.”</p><p>            As Lugia’s orders were being carried out, Moltres began to use careful and concentrated jets of fire to start freeing Lugia from her bonds. Lugia admitted that she did not mind getting a slight bit singed if it meant being liberated from her heavy chains. Moltres also explained that Mera and Cicero had contacted her and Zapdos right after Lugia had left the Deep Palace. They had decided to follow her as best as they could using the two Legendary Birds’ powers to generated hot updrafts behind the assembled flyers. Bubba had carried many of his fellow Honor Guards on his back on the surface of the ocean for the sake of speed as well. They had needed to expend a lot of energy to come even close to keeping pace with Lugia. However, they had arrived in the nick of time in the end. Of course, they had not exactly expected that Lugia would be about to be publicly executed. Still, when they had seen her bound and in danger, they had dived right into action.</p><p>            Once Lugia was finally fully unchained and was shaking her wings out, she looked over the Pokémon who had come all this way to help her. She also saw the villagers who had fought on her behalf. Zapdos and three of his flyers had just come back from their initial investigation of the Band of the Star’s, now abandoned, campsite. Bubba and his aquatic unit were not far away on the water. By now, Lugia’s power had returned to her. The effect of the draining spears was thankfully not permanent.</p><p>Lugia’s eyes began to tear up for one of the few times in her life as she said, “I have to thank every single one of you from the bottom of my heart! I would almost certainly be dead right now if it were not for all of your heroic efforts! I know that I have still not fully lived up to the oath I made to be a better ruler and a better me overall. However, the fact that I am so cared for and admired shows that I must not give up on those goals!”</p><p>            Lugia then sighed a bit and continued, “Still, Tiberius is somewhere out in the world, ready to make war on whoever he views as unworthy to rule or lead. We have crippled his main Band it seems. However, he mentioned having other allies who he could call upon. I must give special thanks to the citizens of this good village who risked themselves to aid in my rescue and the soldiers who came here to do their duty admirably. However, I must ask most of you to continue aiding me in the task of stopping Tiberius and those who stand with him. We will secure any prisoners and documents that we can recover here and learn from them what we can about our enemies’ plans. After that, we will make a plan of our own to stop these agitators for good. If I cannot prove to Tiberius and his ilk that I and those like me can become better, than they will have to be defeated by force before they can possibly start a broader war!”</p><p>            As the assembled Pokémon cheered for Lugia, she knew how much she owed them and how many lives had already been cost by Tiberius’s crusade. Those were mainly the lives of those who had followed him one way or another. Still, even those lives mattered. The next day at the latest, she and her allies would need to find a way to move against the Band and their compatriots. They would need to end Tiberius’s violent plans to change the world.</p>
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<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Interrogation at Naoma</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            It was relatively early in the morning the day after the rout of the Band of the Star at the Naoma village square. The last evening, Zapdos had led a team to secure all the documents and other valuable materials that they could from the enemy camp in the nearby forest. Those items were ferried into Naoma, which was now hosting the reinforcements who had arrived to save Lugia from being executed by Tiberius. Only five members of the Band who had not escaped the battle had been confirmed to be unconscious yet alive. That number included Tiberius’s Lucario lieutenant Kiri. The hostile survivors were to be carefully watched over as they recovered from their injuries. Thankfully, the new prisoners did not include anyone capable of flight. All of Earnest’s flyers had been killed by Zapdos’s initial discharge of electricity, or by their falls after that attack.</p><p>            Efforts were also made to help the villagers who had been knocked unconscious in the battle recover as quickly as practical. It had actually seemed as though the Band of the Star had been avoided hitting the civilians with their strongest attacks. They had been “pulling their punches” when attacking the villagers. That had possibly been because they did not want to risk killing those who they merely saw as deluded, rather than malicious like they saw Lugia as. Either way, Ronaldo and his citizens were relieved that none of their fellow villagers had been slain in the fight to save Lugia from the Band of the Star.</p><p>Lugia had personally told Ronaldo that she was sorry for how brief and impolite she had been with him and his fellows earlier. She had also repeatedly told the residents of Naoma before the day was over that she deeply appreciated their willingness to fight on her behalf. She could not blame the villagers who had scattered once the battle had begun. They were not trained fighters. Most members of the Band of the Star looked to have survived a multitude of battles before having met their collective match the previous day.</p><p>The question remained regarding where Tiberius, Earnest and the other four survivors of the Band of the Star had teleported off to after most of their force had been wiped out. The good news in that regard was that Kiri was now a prisoner of Lugia’s forces. She was clearly a right hand mon of Tiberius. The Crawdaunt leader of the rogue adventurers had voiced great concern when she was knocked out in the first place. He had also indicated a sincere reluctance to leave her behind in particular when Earnest had taken matters into his own hands and called a retreat. Lugia was unsure of how much intelligence she would be able to convince Kiri, or any of the other prisoners, to divulge. She was determined to show that she and her followers were better than Tiberius thought they were by avoiding the use of torture on the captives.</p><p>Lugia knew that after all available intelligence about the Band and their allies was gathered, she would need to track down Tiberius and end his plans. She hated to admit it, but she could see where the leader of the rogue adventurers was coming from. He had come to believe that Legendary Pokémon were unworthy of their status and were dangerous tyrants because of the misbehavior of those like Ho-oh, her late brother. Still, there were Pokémon who clearly cared about her, both mortal and immortal. She wanted to be loved, or at least respected, not feared and hated. Lugia had come to realize that someone as powerful as herself should not simply sit around in her palace and let the world pass her by. There was certainly more that she could do in order to make the world a better place for everyone. That was still true even if she had not figured out her exact plan to improve the world with her power yet.</p><p>Tiberius wanted to change the world for the better, at least it seemed that way. Still, his plan to do so involved trying to overthrow established systems almost for the sake of doing so. Not everyone in the world was even under the rule of a Legendary Pokémon, or worshiped one or more of them. Still, beings like Lugia held enough sway that trying to eradicate their influence and power bases would possibly cause years of bloodshed no matter the outcome of the ensuing conflict, or conflicts. Whatever spark had motivated Tiberius to declare war on most Legendary Pokémon, it needed to be snuffed out before it had the chance to grow into a raging flame capable of burning whole societies to the ground.  </p><p>Now, Lugia was standing in the very square where she had been a chained prisoner of the Band of the Star the day before. Lugia was still, for possibly the first time in her very long existence, feeling lucky to be alive. The arrival of Zapdos, Moltres and their mortal reinforcements had saved her life at practically the last moment. She still regretted not having been able to assist in dispatching most of the Band and in possibly preventing the escape of the foes who had gotten away. Lugia was quite determined that next time, whenever and wherever that battle took place, she would not allow herself to be made so helpless again.</p><p>As Lugia stood in the square, awaiting reports from Zapdos and Moltres regarding the documents they had been assigned to read over, Cicero flew over and landed in front of his Lady. When Lugia looked down at the Dragonite Colonel, he saluted her and explained, “My Lady, the five prisoners taken as a result of yesterday’s battle are all conscious and being watched over at this village’s docks by Captain Bubba’s unit. I must say that Mayor Ronaldo and his people are being quite generous in hosting us for the time being. While we were investigating the camp, we discovered a few sets of cuffs and collars far too small to fit you. I remembered that they are draining restraints, bonds that suppress the powers and attacks of captive Pokémon using crystals connected to a, now slain, Rogue Legendary Pokémon. We have secured our new captives with those restraints. That number includes the Lucario named Kiri.”</p><p>Lugia had an epiphany and replied, “Those crystals have to be similar to the ones that tipped the Draining Spears! However, those spears were also capable of firing off drained energy in a beam. The Band of the Star was said to have been involved in the cleanup after the Second Battle of Shawlia, which you fought in. That has to be how they obtained those crystals for their own use! Colonel Cicero, please have the enemy Lucario brought to me. I intend to speak with her while I await Moltres and Zapdos returning to give their reports.”</p><p>Cicero bowed to Lugia and responded, “I will go and fetch her at once. Hopefully, we can convince her to divulge some sort of useful information. Maybe one of her comrades will talk, even if she refuses to?”</p><p>Cicero then flew away to fetch Kiri. Lugia waited in the square as the local villagers went about their business as well as they could despite yesterday’s dramatic violence. Lugia noticed that some of them were working on repairing the damage done to their village square during the battle. Lugia made a mental note to have some sort of monetary gift, and possibly other gifts, sent from the Trench Realm to Naoma in the near future as a thank you present. The locals had earned it handily thanks to the bravery many of them had displayed on Lugia’s behalf and their willingness to host Lugia’s forces for the moment. She also wondered how Mera was doing managing the affairs of the Deep Palace without her for so long. Lugia had no intention of trying to conceal her defeat and near-death experience from her subjects back home. They needed to hear the truth as soon as possible.</p><p>Soon enough, Lugia saw Cicero and the Octillery Honor Guard from the previous day’s battle marching the captive Kiri into the square. Some of the local villagers glared briefly at the close associate of the one who had nearly murdered their patron. However, they got back to their business pretty quickly.</p><p>Kiri’s arms were bound behind her back with a pair of rigid metal cuffs that seemed to glow slightly. She was also wearing a regular pair of metal shackles and a white cloth gag. She gave Lugia a brief defiant look as she was marched up to the Sea Guardian. However, her eyes also seemed to show signs of fear. She probably knew that she was firmly in the custody of her enemies now. There was almost certainly nobody coming to rescue her and her fellow prisoners for the time being.</p><p>Lugia calmly ordered, “Please remove her gag. I want to speak with this prisoner.”</p><p>Cicero bowed to Lugia as his Octillery subordinate kept watch. He then removed Kiri’s gag and the Lucario prisoner looked up at Lugia and sighed. She then told the Sea Guardian, “I want you to know that I sensed genuine remorse for your past actions and lack thereof in your aura. I did not think that executing you would have been the right thing to do. Still, now that I know what has happened since I was knocked out, I do not intend to betray my leader and my surviving friends so easily. I will resist any attempts you may make to extract information from me by force.”</p><p>Lugia sighed herself and then told Kiri, “I will not have you, or any of your fellow prisoners, tortured. I simply do not believe in causing egregious pain to those who cannot fight back. However, I would still like to know what allies Tiberius has out in the world and to know more details about whatever he is plotting. Your Band of the Star has been crippled as of yesterday. However, it sounded like Tiberius and Earnest have not yet given up on the idea of changing the world via sparking mass violence.”</p><p>Kiri asked, “Have your allies looted our camp fully since our defeat yesterday?”</p><p>Lugia replied, “Yes, the camp has been searched with the utmost thoroughness for anything of strategic value. We have recovered documents that are being reviewed as we speak.”</p><p>Kiri looked concerned and cursed under her breath. She then told Lugia, “In that case, there is not much point in my withholding information from you now. Let me say this, however. I joined up with the Band of the Star to help make the world a safer and more prosperous place. I want to one day settle down and start a family of my own, partially so as to help propagate my rare species. I have followed Tiberius loyally for years and I believe that there is no stopping him once he sets his mind to something. With that said, what were you planning on asking me, anyway?”</p><p>Lugia smiled down at Kiri. She had a strong feeling that the Lucario was not evil herself. However, Kiri had certainly backed someone willing to commit cold-blooded murder in order to advance his agenda. Lugia then asked, “First of all, what other allies does the Band of the Star have? I want to know who they are and where they are.”</p><p>Kiri sighed a bit and admitted, “For one thing, there are other members of the Band of the Star who were not based in this area. You and your followers have admittedly taken down most of our main team. However, we have other members and allied agents who are preparing to begin instigating new revolts. We have a major base of operations on Adalsia. I will not tell you exactly where it is. However, I have a feeling that the documents your allies have obtained will help you narrow its location down quite a bit. There is also the human kingdom of Taleria in this continent’s interior. The King of Taleria, King Hadrianus, and his court have been repeat clients of ours in the past. Tiberius has convinced His Highness that his kingdom and the world are better off without Legendary Pokémon in positions of power. Taleria’s military and natural resources have been at Tiberius’s limited disposal for months now. There are also assorted admirers of our Band living across the landmasses south of the Grand Island. Tiberius and Earnest will be far from alone in whatever they undertake next.”</p><p>Lugia scowled a bit. Tiberius certainly did have allies other than the crippled core of his Band. She then asked Kiri, “I will allow you to return to your fellow prisoners until we find out where you will be held at for the time being. However, I want to know what Tiberius is planning to do with all of his allies and their resources first?”</p><p>Kiri looked up at Lugia and told her, “You should already have a pretty good idea of that by now. He wants to kill a Legendary Pokémon first. Then, he is hoping that the realization that your kind can be slain by mortals will spark a chain reaction which will lead to mass anti-Legendary uprisings across the regions where they hold sway. Of course, our agitators will be there to stoke anti-Legendary sentiment wherever they can insert themselves. Tiberius wants to change the world by eliminating those who he believes are tyrants who have no sense of accountability to those under them. He views your kind as having an alien mindset to mortals and that only those among you who were once mortal can redeem their immortal existences, such as Suicune of Creekside.”</p><p>Lugia grimaced, knowing that she still had work to do on her vow and now hearing directly from one of Tiberius’s closest comrades what he was trying to do. She then saw Zapdos and Moltres flying over towards the village square. Lugia ordered Cicero, “Colonel, please escort Miss Kiri back over to the other prisoners. I will discuss where they are to be taken with Zapdos and Moltres along with the rest of our strategy.” Lugia looked down at Kiri again after that. As she locked eyes with the captured Lucario, she told her, “I fully intend to stop your Band and its leader regardless of the risk to myself. You and your fellow prisoners will be spared. However, as much as I would like to end this mess without further bloodshed, I cannot promise that your allies will be spared as well. If Tiberius cannot be convinced that he is wrong, then I will end his plans one way or another.”</p><p>Before Kiri could reply to Lugia, Cicero gagged her. She was then turned around and marched back towards the other prisoners. As Lugia watched Kiri being escorted away Zapdos and Moltres landed in front of her. The two of them briefly bowed to Lugia.</p><p>Moltres spoke first. She said to Lugia, “I hope that you got some useful information out of that prisoner, My Lady. Zapdos and I learned quite a bit from the seized documents that the enemy left behind at their campsite.”</p><p>Zapdos added, “Our new enemies have a decent network of associates, spies and allies. That much is for sure. I can only assume that you will want for us to take action against them soon. Especially after you were nearly murdered by their leader.”</p><p>Lugia smiled down at Zapdos and Moltres. She then replied, “The three of us should head off somewhere more private. Once we have some privacy, we will formulate a plan to stop the Band of the Star from causing more harm. We will likely need to split up in order to strike their different operations and allies quickly.”</p><p>Moltres and Zapdos both nodded to Lugia. Then, the Guardian of the Seas took off with the two Legendary Birds right behind her. They were headed off to a nearby stretch of beach where they could have a bit of privacy and discuss their next course of action. As she flew ahead of Zapdos and Moltres, Lugia had a feeling that there was something she needed to tell the two of them. Something that she should have told them decades, if not centuries, ago. They had led the effort that had saved her life yesterday. The least that she could give them in exchange for their loyalty was the truth.</p>
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<a name="section0014"><h2>14. A Plan of Attack</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Lugia, Zapdos and Moltres were all standing on a pleasant beach not far to the south of the village of Naoma. Currently, it was still morning. The trio of avian Legendary Pokémon were gathered together to discuss what was to be done about stopping the Band of the Star and their assembled allies. Lugia had learned some details about Tiberius’s allies and plans from speaking with his lieutenant, Kiri. The Lucario prisoner had only revealed some information to her captors upon having been informed that the documents at the Band’s, now abandoned, camp had been seized by Lugia’s followers. Kiri had assumed that just about anything that she divulged to Lugia would be found out by the Sea Guardian’s forces sooner or later.</p><p>            Lugia had just finished telling Zapdos and Moltres about what Kiri had told her. She told them about the human Kingdom of Taleria having thrown in with the Band of the Star. She also mentioned to them that there were other members and agents of the Band of the Star out there. She then made it clear that Tiberius wanted to kill a Legendary Pokémon in order to prove that it was possible for mortals to do so. He was hoping that that action would be the spark that would allow his agitators to ignite anti-Legendary movements the world over.</p><p>            As Lugia finished briefing her two vassals, she told them, “If Tiberius has his way, much of the world will suffer from uprisings and wars. What happened at Ladoria will have only been the beginning of a much greater crisis. Regardless of who, if anyone, wins, the wars that could possibly ensue if Tiberius gets what he wants would be devastating! I want to know what other details the two of you and your followers have learned from looking over the letters, maps, notes and whatever else you could find at the Band’s camp. Once we have all discussed our new intelligence, we need to formulate a plan to effectively oppose our enemies and end their plans one way or another.”</p><p>            After both Moltres and Zapdos nodded to their Lady, Moltres stepped forward and informed Lugia, “The information that you learned about Taleria from Kiri seems accurate. While the Band has other members, admirers and associated auxiliaries, King Hadrianus of Taleria is Tiberius’s largest outside backer. It sounds like Tiberius has convinced Hadrianus that humans and mortal Pokémon alike will be safer and better off if the reign of the Legendaries is brought to an end. Hadrianus has given Tiberius the authority to command large numbers of human warriors and sailors from both Taleria and her vassal ports on the eastern coast of Tarkasia. We have also learned that the Band of the Star maintains some sort of base on the Adalsian Continent that lies to the west of Shawlia. This mystery installation is much closer to the Trench Realm than Naoma is. Interestingly enough, it is apparently quite close to the coastal city of Rokol.”</p><p>            Lugia experienced a flash of memory and replied, “I believe that Rokol is one of the two Northern Adalsian ports that rival Shawlia in terms of size and commercial influence. What is more relevant to us now is that I remember that they consider me to be their local patron, as the citizens of Naoma do. I do not like the idea that Tiberius has a base of operations so close to Rokol. Even then, it could be a coincidence. We certainly need to investigate, and possibly destroy, that enemy base as soon as possible.”</p><p>            Moltres nodded and then continued, “Regarding other allies of the Band of the Star. It does sound like Pokémon across Adalsia, Tarkasia and even Phoenika admire them. They are almost like the southern version of the adventurers’ guild that has been rising up on the Grand Island and possibly northern Adalsia since the defeat and death of Zygarde. It sounds to me that if Tiberius sent out calls to form an army and navy of sorts, there would be dozens, if not hundreds, of individuals who could answer his call. That is in addition to the other official members of the Band of the Star who are stationed at their Adalsian Base and on other missions. We might have defeated most of their elite Pokémon warriors. However, the Band still has a decently impressive support network at their disposal.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded as one piece of a new plan was solidly forming in her mind. She then asked Zapdos, “What new information do you have to report?”</p><p>            Zapdos stepped forward as Moltres stepped back. He then explained, “My Lady, it seems as though Tiberius and his allies have already begun to move against our authority back home. At least ten fresh agitator agents were dispatched to various settlements across the Trench Realm and even to Falira very recently. They will likely work on subtly undermining local authority however they can. These new enemy agents will not be uniformed. Unfortunately for us, they were not identified in detail in the documents that we have captured. I fear that these new enemy agents will serve as effective spies for our foes and could even come to more violently undermine our efforts to stop Tiberius. It also seems likely that agitators have been dispatched to other civilized locales where Legendary Pokémon hold political sway, or receive religious worship. Tiberius wants to grant his anti-Legendary movement as much legitimacy as possible. Therefore, he wants to inspire uprisings in a number of places as close to simultaneously as he can to make it look like the general public is behind overthrowing the Legendaries and their loyalists. We even think that a number of his new agitators have been given orders to act as sleeper agents in various communities. They will lay low and avoid arousing suspicion until they receive new orders telling them to start spreading unrest and undermining existing authorities. The whole thing is honestly kind of brilliant. Still, we obviously cannot allow them to get away with it.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded sharply and told her two vassals, “I believe that I have a rough plan for how we are going to try and shut down most of Tiberius’s operations. Our forces here are limited. However, we still need to make use of everyone we have mustered. Moltres, I want you to take Corran and all of the flying soldiers, expect for Colonel Cicero, who came with you and perform a surgical strike on Taleria. Your objective will be to locate and abduct King Hadrianus. You will need to place him and his people in a position where they will have to agree to stop supporting Tiberius in order to ensure his release. I have faith that you and your team can figure out how to accomplish that task. I do not want you to kill the King of Taleria because we do not want him becoming a martyr to the anti-Legendary movement. That might be unavoidable with Tiberius. However, at least if he dies, the Band of the Star loses its leader and mastermind.”</p><p>            Moltres saluted Lugia with a wing, she seemed willing to take on her new mission. Lugia then took a deep breath and told Zapdos, “I want you to return to Likala with the prisoners and the Honor Guards here who cannot fly. You will take command of the Trench Realm in my stead for the moment. Maybe the locals here in Naoma have a boat that you can borrow for prisoner and supply transport purposes? Once you get back home, you are to inform the residents of the Trench Realm of the presence of foreign interlopers. Offer bounties for reliable information about hostile agitators and carefully screen anyone who enters the realm from foreign territories and stays indefinitely. Arrest and detain anyone who is conclusively revealed to be an agent of the Band. However, do whatever you can to not crack down on the larger populace in such a way that would advantage our enemies and make their point about tyranny for them. We need to root out the Band’s infiltrators in the fairest and most open way possible. Also, send a courier to Falira so that Moltres’s subjects know what is going on and are on alert regarding possible agents of the conspiracy in their midst.”</p><p>            As Zapdos nodded, Moltres asked, “My Lady, what will you be doing while we carry out your orders?”</p><p>            Lugia replied, “I intend to investigate the mysterious enemy base located nearby Rokol after looking over the maps and documents that mention it. I want to see if I can find out how many of the enemy are present at that location. I will attempt to shut it down myself if that seems practical. However, I will retreat quickly if I am outmatched this time. Hopefully, I can obtain some degree of assistance from Rokol, if the need arises. I would like to be able to take more fighters with me in my initial investigation of the base. However, I do not want to waste any time now that Tiberius is likely marshaling his allies as we speak. We will have to ‘divide and conquer,’ as is so often said.”</p><p>            Zapdos bowed to Lugia and told her, “I am sure that we will carry out your orders to the best of our abilities, My Lady. Is there anything else that you need to speak with us about before we leave to rally our respective forces?”</p><p>            Lugia sighed a bit and then replied, “Yes, there is actually one very important thing that I need to tell both of you right now.”</p><p>            Moltres asked Lugia, as the Sea Guardian took a very deep breath, “What could that be?”</p><p>            Lugia looked over at her two most loyal servants and allies and told them, “There is something that I need to tell the two of you that I should have brought up centuries ago. That being the true origin of the two of you, along with Articuno.”</p><p>            Zapdos and Moltres both looked deeply surprised as Lugia continued, “Truth be told, you three were once mortals like the Legendary Beasts were. You were all avian Pokémon of some kind. I honestly cannot remember the exact species. One night, well over one thousand years ago there was a truly terrible storm that wracked the seas off of the Western Adalsian Coast. I had left my domain in the trench where the Deep Palace sits because I had realized that the unusually mighty storm was coming and that I needed to warn whoever I could about it. I guess that I was trying to be a good Pokémon way back then as well. However, I was too late in some instances. All three of you were flying Pokémon who had lost their lives in the storm. I happened to find all three of your sopping wet corpses at different times as I traveled that terrible night. I gathered your bodies on the beach of Likala long before that island was ever settled. At first, I just wanted to ensure that you three got a proper burial and was going to say a simple prayer for your souls. However, I ended up deciding to try something different. I used my power in a mighty ritual to wrench your souls from the afterlife and empower you with new elementally-charged bodies. I cannot remember if Ho-oh revived Entei, Raikou and Suicune before or after I revived the three of you. Still, the result was very similar. After learning that you three had no real memories of being mortal left, I made the mistake of not telling you the truth. I was worried that learning what had really happened would cause you three unnecessary anxiety. Still, I said that you exist in your current forms because of my actions. That was no lie. As you know, we came to our current arrangement in the years that followed that. Articuno left my service for the Grand Island and the two of you took charge of your respective islands and ruled over the mortals on them in my name.”</p><p>            Zapdos and Moltres were both visibly stunned as Lugia finished her story. Lugia was unsure of what they would say to her when they were done processing what they had just been told. However, she still added, “I gave the two of you and Articuno new immortal lives. Still, I never considered any of you to be my living property. That is why I allowed Articuno to leave in the first place. You two led the effort that saved my life just yesterday. I have to say that even though I need your help to stop Tiberius and his allies, we are frankly even after this is over as far as I am concerned. I am so sorry that I was not honest with you two and Articuno centuries ago. However, now the truth is out in the air. You may tell the story that I just told you to anyone you wish.”</p><p>            Moltres looked to have recovered from shock. She then stepped forward and told Lugia, “I always wondered if I had been a mortal Pokémon once. Still, I almost never voiced that idea aloud. My… Lugia, I want you to know that I could never hate you. You have still been the closest thing that I have had to a mother in this life, despite your flaws. I appreciate your being honest with us and that you are genuinely grateful that we saved your life from the Band of the Star. I will carry out your orders regarding Taleria and her King. I also intend to always be there for you into the future, hopefully long after Tiberius and his wrongheaded ilk are dealt with.”</p><p>            As Moltres was taking off to rally her consort and the other mortal flyers, Zapdos bowed to Lugia and told her, “I agree with Moltres. It is good to finally know the truth. Still, I will continue to trust you as I have for so long. I will take command of the Trench Realm in your stead and we will put a stop to the Band’s planned insurrections by whatever means we can!”</p><p>            As Zapdos and Moltres were flying off to carry out Lugia’s orders, she teared up a bit. As the two of them departed, the Sea Guardian called after them, “You two are great, you know that? Thank you for everything! I will be off to investigate the enemy base tomorrow after reviewing the seized enemy documents.” Lugia then took off for Naoma. She had some maps and such to review before she left the coastal village early the next morning. She was determined as ever to stop the Band of the Star, especially since both her life and the lives of some of those closest to her were riding on the defeat of Tiberius and his conspiracy.</p>
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<a name="section0015"><h2>15. The Adalsian Coast</h2></a>
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    <p>            Lugia had spent the rest of the day after her near execution in Naoma. Zapdos had departed with the aquatic Honor Guards and a large boat that had been purchased from some villagers first. The boat had been purchased to serve as a transport for the prisoners that had been taken as a result of the previous day’s victory. They were all headed for the island of Likala with all deliberate speed. Moltres had rallied the flyers who had come with her and Zapdos and had helped to rescue Lugia. They had gathered what information they could about the Kingdom of Taleria. They were off to the interior of the Tarkasian Continent in order to make their surgical strike against King Hadrianus. His planned abduction was intended to hopefully make Tiberius lose a major source of support.  </p><p>            The morning after giving Zapdos and Moltres their new orders and telling them the truth about their origins, Lugia was standing in the Naoma Village Square where she had nearly been put to death by Tiberius. A number of the locals, many of whom had fought and even been knocked unconscious trying to protect her, were standing before her. At the head of the group was Ronaldo, the Psyduck Mayor of Naoma.</p><p>            After looking over the present villagers and smiling, Lugia told them all, “I want to sincerely thank the residents of this village who assisted in the battle waged here against the Band of the Star one more time. You risked your lives on my behalf and many of you nearly perished for your bravery. Were you fighting less principled, or image conscious, enemies, many of you might not have survived that engagement. Now, I sadly cannot afford to spend any more time here. I promise you that my Trench Realm will find some way to repay this village in the near future after the Band of the Star is stopped. I want you all to be wary of anyone possibly connected to the Band in the near future. However, I doubt that this village will become a target again anytime soon since Tiberius considers the slaying of a Legendary Pokémon to be his primary goal. I am off to the northern coast of the Adalsian Continent to investigate the reported base occupied by the Band. If I can locate and destroy that installation, it will ideally hamper our enemies’ operations severely.”</p><p>            As Lugia finished up her statement, Ronaldo stepped forward and told her, “My Lady, we appreciate your gratitude towards us. Admittedly, we were all quite surprised to actually see you defeated and chained. However, those of us who were willing to fight to see you saved and freed, myself included, have no regrets about our choice. We wish you the best of luck in tracking down that villain Tiberius and bringing about the end of his murderous plans.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded sharply and smiled down at Ronaldo and his villagers one more time. She then replied, “Hopefully, good news will be sent here in due time. News that the Band of the Star is no longer a threat. I am off to northern Adalsia now. I need to try and see if I can pinpoint the real location of the enemy base and possibly raze it to the ground with or without help from the citizens of Rokol. Goodbye, good Pokémon of Naoma. With any luck, we will meet again one day soon.”</p><p>            Lugia backed up a bit and then rapidly took off into the sky. She began to fly west towards the northern coast of the Adalsian Continent. Lugia intended to reach the vicinity of Rokol within the next few days at most. She wanted to search for the Band’s base in that area and see if she could effectively assault and destroy it. This time, she had no intention of being caught off guard by her enemies. She was well aware that they were highly unlikely to accept a surrender this time, even though she had intention of putting herself in that position again. The occupants of the base would probably attempt to kill her on sight, whether or not Tiberius was with them. This meant that Lugia might have to retreat if outmatched. However, she accepted that possibility. She knew that considering needing to fall back would likely be a part of whatever plan she would make upon finding the base and discerning its true nature.</p><p>            For the next four days, Lugia made her way towards the rough location of the Band of the Star’s secret base. She swam and flew from the southwestern coast of the Tarkasian Continent towards Adalsia. From there, she hugged the coastline for quite some time as she closed in on the vicinity of the city of Rokol. Lugia knew that for her, the frontier of the Trench Realm would only be another couple days of travel from Rokol.</p><p>Lugia hoped that Zapdos and his forces were closing in on Likala, or at least would be soon. They would hopefully reach the island and mobilize the Trench Realm against the Band’s agents as soon as possible. She also knew that it was possible that Tiberius’s spies would realize that some of their captured allies were with Zapdos and his soldiers. They could possibly deduce that the prisoners were to be held in the dungeon beneath Likala’s only settlement. Even if Tiberius was to learn the location of his captive allies, Lugia was unsure if he would try to free them. Still, she had a more immediate concern on her mind. She needed to locate the base that the Band had only marked the rough location of on their maps and see if it could be taken down.</p><p>It was now midafternoon as Lugia was swimming in the coastal waters less than a couple of hours from Rokol. She had spent almost the whole last day, after arriving in the region, scouring the vicinity for the Band of the Star’s hidden base. So far, she had had no luck. She had seen a few ships and a number of local aquatic Pokémon on the water. However, none of them had attacked her, or otherwise displayed conclusive evidence that they were affiliated with the either the Band of the Star, or the Kingdom of Taleria. As for the coastline itself, Lugia had been searching it for a camp, a cave, or even a small town, for hours. However, she had just noticed some rock formations that were within sight of Rokol from the air.</p><p>As Lugia had been observing the rock formations, she wondered if any residents of Rokol would notice that their Legendary patron was scouring their vicinity in the flesh. She had a feeling that the coastal rock formations that she was now studying were easily large enough to conceal some kind of base. However, there did not seem to be a way inside of the rocks, assuming that there was even anything of note inside of them. Of course, tunnels could certainly be involved. That would admittedly be the best way to keep someone like Lugia out of the base, even though certain other species of Pokémon could burrow in without much warning.</p><p>Determined to get as much of a complete view of the rock formation as possible, Lugia dived into a deep-looking part of the waters near the shoreline. She began to swim up and down the shore where the rock formations sat, looking for any irregularities that could mean anything. She was starting to lose some patience in her search for the Band’s base. Still, she doubted that its very existence was actually a ruse. At the same time, it was possible that it had been evacuated after her enemies’ loss at Naoma. Hopefully, if the base had been evacuated, she could find some traces of previous occupation and continue tracking down her foes.</p><p>As Lugia was now swimming a bit under the waterline, she noticed something that intrigued her. She saw a spot where the rock face looked to prevent entry from above and directly below the waterline, but where there seemed to be a submerged tunnel entrance of some kind. The entrance that sat a few feet below the water looked just large enough for her to squeeze through it and into the tunnel.</p><p>Realizing that this could very well be something worth looking into, Lugia decided to go and investigate the tunnel. She swam towards it and managed to carefully slip into it without making any significant noise, or other disturbance.</p><p>When Lugia made it to the other side of the rock face, she saw that she was in a large tunnel that was partially filled with water. Most of the tunnel sat above the water mark. The tunnel was lit by both torches and luminescent fungi. There were ledges higher up in the tunnel wide enough for most Pokémon, and humans, to stand and walk on safely. They looked to be positioned in such a way as to allow the torches to be relit and replaced when necessary. Lugia noted that there was nobody on patrol who she could see at the moment.</p><p>As Lugia thought that there was an extremely good chance that this was the Band of the Star’s secret base, she decided to swim deeper into the tunnel. However, she first turned around briefly in the water and saw that there were a series of gears and chains mounted into the rock face that she had swam under. Lugia quickly realized that this part of the rock face could be opened and closed mechanically. She was forced to admit to herself that that was clever. The rock face had looked quite solid from the outside. Still, seeing the mechanism just made Lugia even more convinced that she was in the right place. It was time for her to see if she could find the Band of the Star, and possibly some of their allies, deeper inside the cave.</p><p>Lugia stayed underwater as she swam deeper and deeper into the tunnel. It only took her a few minutes until she saw the tunnel’s end. Lugia stayed underwater as she entered a massive chamber. This chamber had dry ground on its far side to the south of Lugia’s position. Three smaller tunnels that Lugia could not fit inside of for sure marked the opposite edge of the chamber. The cavernous space also had an impressively tall rocky ceiling and was lit by a multitude of torches, braziers and clusters of fungi.</p><p>As Lugia did her best to scan the area while staying still and making herself harder to detect despite her size, she began to realize who and what else was in the massive chamber. A fleet of at least fifteen medium sized warships equipped with rams where their bows met the water was anchored in the chamber. Some assorted ballistae and catapults were also mounted atop the warships. Behind the fleet, Lugia could make out at least twenty artillery pieces that were sitting on the dry ground farther away from her. More ballistae and catapults, along with a couple trebuchets, sat unloaded, but mostly fully constructed. Some of them were on wheels for ease of movement. The artillery weapons dotted the shore of the sea cave. Clearly this was the base of someone who was preparing for war.</p><p>Lugia could also make out some banners hanging close to the smaller tunnel entrances. Some of them bore the same design as the uniforms of the Band of the Star. She also saw some banners that were red and gold with the colors woven in a pattern that she was pretty sure was symbolic of the Kingdom of Taleria. This was indeed the secret base that the Band of the Star had not even directly marked on their maps out of fear of it being discovered.</p><p>As Lugia was floating slowly closer towards the anchored enemy fleet, she wondered what exactly her plan of attack would be. She needed to do as much damage as possible in a hurry, especially seeing as though there could be lots of enemies in the area ready to crew the ships and the artillery. She was already starting to make out both Pokémon and humans moving amongst the artillery and coming and going from the tunnels.</p><p>Lugia was now getting close to the anchored ship that was the furthest from the dry land in the southern portion of the cavern. As she did so, she heard what sounded like somebody calling out in panic in a dialect that she could not comprehend. She quickly realized that the voice was almost certainly that of a human. She only knew how to speak the most common human language. This voice was not speaking that tongue.</p><p>Now looking up towards the voice that had cried out, Lugia saw a human lookout standing at the bow of the nearest ship and pointing down at where she was swimming. She saw his slightly dark skin and black hair, but did not get a good look at his clothing. Knowing that her enemies would be alerted quickly and that there were likely dozens of them in this base, Lugia decided that now was the time to do some damage. She was going to show this mortal fleet what the Guardian of the Seas could do when her anger was roused.</p>
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<a name="section0016"><h2>16. The Sea Cave</h2></a>
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    <p>            Lugia was swimming in the massive sea cave where the Band of the Star and their human Talerian allies had been storing a small fleet of warships along with a number of artillery pieces. She had just been spotted swimming near both the surface of the water and one of the fleet’s ships. A human lookout had seen her and was calling out at the top of his lungs in order to alert his comrades to her presence.</p><p>            Deciding that she was not about to flee just yet, Lugia decided to attack the nearest enemy vessel and sink her quickly. She charged up her body with shimmering blueish draconic energy and shot forward through the water. Lugia’s mighty full-body strike, the same type of attack that had eliminated the Dragalge Trajan before, smashed into the lower portions of the ship’s bow. Still charged up with energy, Lugia took off into the air, smashing the whole bow of the warship to splinters as she did so.</p><p>            What remained of the warship began to rapidly take on water and sink. Lugia had almost certainly eliminated the lookout who had spotted her earlier. While not many other crew members had been aboard the ship while it was anchored, it was at least one less ship that her enemies could make use of. However, there were around fourteen other warships in the cavern. Lugia need to take as many of them down as she could and do so fast.</p><p>            Alarm bells began to ring throughout the cave as Lugia saw humans wearing red-tinted bronze armor scrambling to ready weapons and shields. She also saw a few Pokémon wearing the dark blue and dark red bands adorned with gold stars that marked them as followers of Tiberius.</p><p>            As some the hostile Pokémon tried to get into range to attack Lugia, who was now airborne and hovering in the massive cavern, at least twenty humans were preparing to attack her. Lugia knew that they were the least important targets for her to deal with right now.</p><p>            Human archers took aim at Lugia from behind a rank of shield bearing warriors. They loosed their arrows. However, a few of them missed Lugia entirely. The ones that connected harmlessly bounced off of her hide. Lugia could withstand the pressure of the deepest parts of the oceans without any real discomfort. Therefore, most physical projectiles were borderline useless against her skin.</p><p>            Lugia angrily bellowed down at her scrambling enemies, “You have angered the Guardian of the Seas! I will not hide like a coward from your ilk! You will not defeat me so easily this time!” Lugia then, as more arrows failed to injure her at all, conjured and launched a barrage of boulders that crashed into the deck of a nearby warship and managed to penetrate all the way down until they breached the bottom hull. Now, a second hostile ship was sinking.</p><p>            As crew members, human and Pokémon alike, tried to load a few of the ballistae, more arrows failed to even distract Lugia from her more important targets. She flew towards another warship. Once she was hovering directly over it, Lugia breathed a powerful Aeroblast down towards the vessel’s deck. The column of hyper-concentrated winds smashed into the deck of the warship and, like Lugia’s conjured boulders from a moment earlier, rapidly smashed through every deck and even the hull. The warship began to take on water quickly and then began to sink. Now, three enemy ships were effectively destroyed.</p><p>            Lugia saw that three enemy ballistae, one of which was mounted atop a warship, were taking aim at her. All three ballistae opened fire at roughly the same time. One large bolt missed her narrowly, she evaded a second and took the third one to one of her knees.</p><p>            As Lugia winced in a bit of pain, she advanced forward through the air, the sheer force of her movement dislodging the enemy ballista bolt in her leg somewhat painfully. Lugia flew over and past the enemy fleet, evading two more ballista bolts as she did so. Now, a number of hostile Pokémon were firing their own ranged attacks up at Lugia. However, their attacks either missed, fell short, or did not do much to harm the Sea Guardian.</p><p>            Targeting the collection of artillery pieces behind the enemy fleet, Lugia flew over the line of human warriors and let out a battle cry as she charged her body with draconic energy again. Lugia stretched her wings out to maximize how much area she could affect. She then dived right for the artillery, her energy field absorbing a number of arrows and other ranged attacks as she braced for the violent impact.</p><p>            Lugia smashed into a number of the assorted artillery pieces. Swinging her charged wings mightily, she destroyed a multitude of the, mostly-wooden, heavy weapons. When Lugia finally pulled up back into the air and her energy field dissipated, she saw that she had destroyed between eight to ten of the hostile artillery pieces with her single well-aimed swoop.</p><p>            The enemies were calling out in panic now, a few Pokémon and a number of humans were falling back into the tunnels. The human warriors standing not far from where Lugia had smashed around half of their artillery began to break ranks. They were probably afraid that she would dive right for them and take them all down in one mighty attack.</p><p>            Lugia evaded a ballista bolt from one of the enemy ships and then summoned up a mighty blast of high-pressure water in her mouth. She aimed it right into the center of a cluster of hostile Pokémon nearby their allied humans. Lugia breathed out her mighty blast of water, which sent the hostile Pokémon flying every which way. Even if they were not all dead, they were certainly unconscious. One enemy Pokémon, a Gigalith, was sent bowling into a number of nearby human warriors. As at least five humans were knocked down and out by the Gigalith. The rocky Pokémon was also clearly out of the fight.</p><p>            More enemies were still on their way as two ballista bolts managed to embed themselves in Lugia’s back. Standard arrows kept bouncing off of her hide. The occasional Pokémon ranged attack that actually connected with Lugia did not have much effect. These enemies were clearly not the elites of the Band of the Star. Most of those more experienced fighters had been captured or killed as a consequence of the recent battle at Naoma.</p><p>            Lugia knew that she could not keep what she was doing up forever. However, she was determined to destroy as much enemy war material here as she could. She turned to one of the hostile docked warships that had managed  to hit her with a ballista bolt. Lugia then launched a number of boulders into its upper deck. Just like with the second ship that Lugia had sunk, this one began to take on water and go down quickly. Now, around a quarter of the warships being kept in the sea cave had been rendered unusable.</p><p>            Even as some enemies fled the action, more of them, mostly Pokémon, were emerging from the tunnels at the southern edge of the massive sea cave. Lugia lined up another three hostile artillery pieces and dived down through the air. She then breathed out a second Aeroblast and tore all three of the heavy weapons to shreds with her column of torrential winds.</p><p>            As Lugia pulled back up into the sky, dodging two more hostile ballista bolts in the process, she called down to her enemies, fueled by adrenaline and anger, “Do you see what you have done by angering me! Your plans threaten the lives of thousands! I will not allow you to set the world on fire with your rhetoric and weapons! You will not get away with this…”</p><p>            Before Lugia could finish her declaration, she heard a male voice shouting back at her. The voice, which made a chill run down her spine, asked “Where is Kiri? What have you done with her you monstrous tyrant!”</p><p>            Lugia glared down to see Tiberius and Earnest emerging from one of the three smaller tunnels with their draining spears at the ready. Tiberius seemed to have picked up a replacement for his original weapon that had been destroyed by Zapdos. As Lugia was mostly unaffected, or missed, by arrows and other ranged attacks, she told the Crawdaunt leader of the Band of the Star, “She and a few of your other cohorts are now prisoners of the Trench Realm. They will be kept in our custody for the time being. I have come here myself to show you that I am no coward like my brother often was! I know what you are planning to do with these ships and weapons, arm uprisings across the world against me and my kin! I won’t let you start such an unnecessary and costly conflict!”</p><p>            Tiberius took aim at Lugia with his draining spear. As its head glowed, Earnest led three other flying Pokémon up towards Lugia. He was telekinetically holding his draining spear in front of him. Tiberius then called up, “You have proven that you are no coward, ‘My Lady.’ Coming here seemingly alone after the way we humbled and nearly executed you so recently was quite a brave move. However, I will still see you dead!” Tiberius fired off a beam of energy from his draining spear which struck Lugia dead on in the chest. His weapon’s head no longer glowed as he had used all of its energy charge to blast her.</p><p>            Lugia recoiled in pain from the beam Tiberius had fired into her from his weapon. She then saw Earnest coming towards her with his three flyers. Lugia conjured her boulders again and tossed them down at her incoming foes. One of them, a Yanmega, took two boulders and was crumpled to death. Earnest took one boulder, but kept coming. A Swablu who had been following Earnest was clipped by the final boulder and was sent spinning out of control. She managed to get some control of herself and landed, badly wounded, nearby Tiberius.</p><p>            Tiberius shouted to his various allies, “This time, we cannot retreat! Bring her down! We can prove that mortals can kill immortals right here and now!”</p><p>            Earnest simply nodded and then charged Lugia full speed in the air with his draining spear. He advanced well ahead of the Ledian who was still following him and whipped up a mighty toxic wind to wound Lugia. He then used telekinetic force to plunge his draining spear into Lugia’s belly.</p><p>            Lugia, despite starting to feel faint now, lurched to the left in the air, evading a trio of ballista bolts in the process. Earnest’s draining spear fell out of her stomach with its head glowing. As Earnest dived after his weapon, the enemy Ledian who had been following him flew down to provide cover for some of his allies on the ground. He clearly did not want to face Lugia alone. Lugia then sent a third Aeroblast down towards Tiberius, she knew that he was the undisputed enemy leader here.</p><p>            Tiberius was too busy firing off a stream of bubbles at Lugia to evade her attack even partially. He took the full brunt of the Aeroblast and was sent tumbling backwards. The impact force of Lugia’s attack on the ground also sent a couple of hostile humans who had been standing nearby Tiberius flying a short distance. However, they landed on their backs most likely badly wounded, but still alive.</p><p>            As Tiberius did his best to haul himself up and Earnest retrieved his falling draining spear using telekinetic force, Lugia evaded another ballista bolt and took two more. The artillery weapons did not wound her much. However, unlike normal arrows, they could harm her in the first place. Lugia was not feeling great at the moment. She knew that another couple of significant attacks would likely bring her down and mean her near-certain death.</p><p>            Lugia shook the ballista bolts out of her body and then glared down at Tiberius, as she narrowly evaded a flying spear charge from Earnest. She then called down, “Discretion can sometimes be the better part of valor. You have not seen the last of me, Tiberius! I will see your plans stopped and your movement sundered soon enough!”</p><p>            Tiberius screamed, “Do not let her get away!” However, Lugia charged her body with energy one last time and flew through the air towards the exit of the sea cave. Enemy projectiles were mostly absorbed by the energy field as Earnest was unable to catch up to Lugia and Tiberius swung his pincers in fury after missing Lugia with a second barrage of bubbles.</p><p>            Lugia’s energy field wore off as she flew over the enemy fleet. She sent a final Aeroblast down into one more enemy warship as she retreated. While the ship began to sink quickly, Lugia did not even bother to look back. She dived down into the water and swam away from her enemies, evading their final volley of projectiles as she did so.</p><p>            Lugia swam through the sea cave tunnel as fast as she could, heading for the partially-blocked exit. She had sunk five enemy ships, destroyed at least ten artillery pieces and defeated a decent number of enemy personnel. However, Tiberius and Earnest were still in command of their base. This was not over yet.</p><p>            As Lugia closed in on the exit of the sea cave, she conjured one more barrage of boulders and flung them right into the mechanisms that controlled the hidden door. Somewhat to Lugia’s surprise, the stone door was simply smashed to rubble by her mighty attack. She had wanted to jam the door to make the enemy fleet’s possible future evacuation of the cavernous base harder. However, at least she had an easier way out now.</p><p>            Lugia flew up and out of them cave as the afternoon wore on. She then decided to fly towards the nearby city of Rokol as her injuries began to slowly heal. She was determined to inform the locals who worshiped her about the danger posed by the Band of the Star and their allies. With any luck, they would be willing to help her return to the agitators’ base and destroy it for good.</p>
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<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Rokol City</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>---</p><p>Inside of the sea cave base of the Band of the Star. Roughly one hour after Lugia’s rapid retreat:</p><p>            Tiberius was not in the best mood right now. Lugia had reappeared faster than he had expected her to and dealt some real damage to his sea cave base. The last hour after Lugia’s successful escape from the base had been spent assessing the damage that she had done, along with tallying the badly wounded and slain members of the Band and their Talerian human auxiliaries.</p><p>            Lugia had managed to sink five of the band’s sixteen total ships that had been anchored in the sea cave base. She had destroyed over half of their artillery that had not been loaded onto ships as well. On top of that, she had killed, or seriously wounded, a decent number of the Band’s members that had been staffing the base. A number of Talerian auxiliaries were also in pretty bad condition, or outright dead, after Lugia’s attack. Thankfully for Tiberius and his associates, most of the ships had not had anything close to their full crew complements aboard when the surprise attack had come. They could have lost a lot more lives to Lugia than they had. That was at least something to be grateful for.</p><p>            As Tiberius was waiting for Earnest to return from his aerial sweep of the area, he was at least grateful that Lugia had divulged a small amount of information during her assault on his base. The so-called Sea Guardian had revealed that Kiri and whoever else had been captured after the Band had retreated from Naoma were now considered prisoners of her Trench Realm. That could mean that they were going to be held in the vicinity of Lugia’s Deep Palace. Of course, Kiri and the other prisoners would have to be kept somewhere above the waves so that they would not drown. Tiberius remembered that there was an island called Likala that was considered under the jurisdiction of the Trench Realm. It was the home of the Legendary Bird Zapdos, one of the two immortals who had led the team that had routed his forces at Naoma.</p><p>            Tiberius had considered the possibility that Moltres’s home island of Falira would be where the prisoners’ were being taken to. However, that island was not an official part of the Trench Realm. His enemies might have also learned that he had had agents sent to Falira, along with many of the underwater regions of the Trench Realm. However, he had not ordered any agitators sent to Likala specifically so far. If his enemies had read the documents that they would have seized from his abandoned camp if they were smart, they would have learned roughly where he had had sent his agents. Thankfully, they would have more trouble discerning the agents’ exact identities, since copies of their more detailed orders were not present in that camp.</p><p>Ultimately, the leader of the Band of the Star was convinced that Likala was the first place that he would need to have investigated to see if his captive friends were being taken there. Naoma was too far away from the Trench Realm and he would likely know if for any reason the prisoners had been taken to the nearby city of Rokol. He had a few competent spies operating in Rokol, seeing as though it was the closest city to his secret base. Rokol was also a city where the worship of Lugia was common. While rescuing Kiri and the others was a high priority of Tiberius’s, he knew that there were more immediate concerns to worry about at the moment.  </p><p>Earnest then fluttered down and landed next to Tiberius. The Xatu told him, “Tiberius, sir, work has begun on clearing out the wrecked ships as best as possible where they could act as obstacles to our fleet. Should we begin cleaning up our destroyed artillery pieces as well?”</p><p>Tiberius shook his head no and told Earnest, “No, old friend. Here are the orders I want you deliver to everyone here: We need to begin a full evacuation of this base! We will load the remaining artillery pieces, as much of ours supplies as we can, everyone here who is still in good condition and the wounded humans onto our remaining ships and sail out of here as soon as possible. I want us clear of this area by the time that the sun rises tomorrow morning!”</p><p>Earnest asked Tiberius, looking a bit surprised at the orders that he had been given, “Sir, why are we evacuating after we were able to drive our enemy off?”</p><p>Tiberius looked and felt a bit annoyed and quickly responded, “Because she now knows where this base is! We also know that she exposed the entrance on her way out. I also want a message sent to our spies in Rokol to be on high alert for Lugia showing up in the city. I believe that there is a good chance that she might try to convince the citizens of that city to aid her in a second attack on our, now weakened, position. They could even uncover the other entrances to this base hidden in the forests to the south and attack us through those tunnels.”</p><p>Earnest nodded and then asked Tiberius, “If you do not mind my asking, sir, where are we headed, now that we are abandoning this position?”</p><p>Tiberius told Earnest, “We are going to sail out of this base and then rendezvous with our Talerian flagship and the aquatic Pokémon accompanying her on the ocean to the northwest of here. We will see if there are any other allies of ours that we can gather as well. After meeting up with the flagship, we will start to head towards Likala. We will be sending stealthy couriers ahead to see if they and our agents who are already in the area can confirm the prisoners’ location. If it turns out that Likala is where Kiri and the others are being taken to, then we will raid that island, attempt to kill Zapdos if he is there and rescue our friends. Then, we will fall back before the Honor Guards and other hostile underwater units arrive in force. If Lugia somehow appears on the battlefield, then she is to be considered our top priority target. However, our human warriors and sailors, as well as our weaker Pokémon, should avoid engaging her. We have seen what she can do to those who try to engage her while unprepared. Some of our fighters have even fallen to her attacks despite being reasonably powerful themselves.”</p><p>Earnest nodded and then turned to take off, as he was about to leave Tiberius mentioned, “I will be off to retrieve some important supplies from the special storage room before I assist with coordinating the evacuation. I think that it is time that I made the upgrade to my weapon that we were talking about earlier. I believe that it could help to turn the odds in our favor against Zapdos, Lugia, or any other Pokémon who challenges us.”</p><p>Earnest gave one more nod and then took off to carry out his leader’s orders. As he did so, Tiberius headed off into one of the tunnels that led to the base’s quarters and supply storage rooms. He was off to secure some rare and critically-important items. His replacement draining spear was about to be transformed into a weapon of even greater power. One that would hopefully make the task of slaying a Legendary Pokémon even easier to complete.</p><p>---</p><p>            Lugia was now closing in on the light-grey and white colored skyline of the coastal city of Rokol. This port city was one of the larger settlements on the northern coast of the Adalsian Continent. It was a city that, in part due to its comparative closeness to the Trench Realm, considered Lugia herself to be the local divine patron. In that sense, Rokol was much like the far smaller Village of Naoma. Lugia was on her way to Rokol to warn the locals about the Band of the Star and possibly enlist their aid against the rogue adventurers and their allies. She was hoping to hit Tiberius’s base again, possibly from multiple angles if that proved feasible. She was unsure what her enemies would do next. However, they still had a decent fleet of ships anchored in their sea cave base. That fleet was not necessarily enough to propel a series of major uprisings to victory by itself. Still, it was a big enough fleet to be concerning. If Moltres somehow proved unable to distract the Talerians back on Tarkasia, then there could very well be more ships and artillery pieces on their way to bolster Tiberius’s forces.</p><p>            Now, Lugia was closing in on the walls of Rokol. She was soon flying over the city, getting the attention of Pokémon who were likely natives of the city and some who were likely foreigners. Evening was just starting to hint that it would be falling soon. Still, Lugia wanted to speak with whoever was in charge of Rokol as soon as possible. She flew over much of the city until she found a large palatial structure nearby the southern walls. Lugia saw what appeared to be a large open space nearby the towering structure. She even saw a towering stone statute of herself atop a massive fountain at the center of the square.</p><p>            Lugia already had the attention of the Pokémon in the square. They were marveling at her as she descended and landed nearby the ornate fountain. Some of them bowed to Lugia, some of them were simply gaping. None of them seemed afraid, or looked like they were going to run away. Still, Lugia could not help but wonder if her arrival had already alerted some associates of the Band of the Star. They could have at least one spy already working within Rokol. They could be sleeper agents, or active agitators. Still, Lugia was more focused on the enemies who had openly revealed their intentions right now.</p><p>            As Lugia was looking over the massive crowd, which was gathering around her, but staying at a respectful distance, she cleared her throat and asked them, “Citizens of Rokol, I have come here because I need to urgently speak with whoever leads this city. Some enemies of mine, who could come to threaten much of the world, have set up a base of operations in the rocky formations not far from here. They call themselves the Band of the Star and they are aided by many humans from Taleria, among others.”</p><p>            As the crowd murmured, Lugia could hear one young-sounding voice asking, “The Band of the Star are enemies of the Lady Lugia. I thought that they were heroic adventurers.” She also heard another voice saying, “I wonder what these rogues could possibly want and why there are humans with them?”</p><p>            As the crowd kept chattering and murmuring, nobody addressed Lugia directly. As the Sea Guardian’s patience wore thin and she was about to more directly ask to be taken to see whoever was in charge of Rokol, A male Sealeo and two Grapploct made their way to the front of the assembled crowd. They were all wearing badges that were marked with what looked like a pair of wings akin to Lugia’s.</p><p>            The Sealeo bowed to Lugia and told her, “Welcome to Rokol, Your Ladyship. My name is Mark and I am one of the Lieutenants of the Rokol City Guard. These two Grapploct are Sergeants under my command. It sounds like you need to meet with Matriarch Marianna, since you said that you needed to speak with the leader of our city.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded sharply at Mark and asked him, “If Matriarch Marianna is indeed the leader of this city, then I do need to speak with her immediately. I apologize for my sudden appearance. However, I need to warn her about a threat to this city and the wider world that myself and many of my followers have been combatting recently. The leader of the Band of the Star, Tiberius, nearly executed me recently and that is only one part of what he plans to eventually accomplish.”</p><p>            As the entire crowd seemed to be in shock that anyone would want to execute Lugia and that someone had almost done so successfully, Mark responded, “…Very well, we will take you to see the Matriarch in the governmental palace. Hopefully, you will be able to squeeze in to the main hall and then we will have someone fetch her for you.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded and then followed Mark and his two subordinates away from the crowd and towards the ornate and massive governmental palace that sat directly to the south of the square. Lugia knew that she would have quite a bit to tell the Matriarch of Rokol. She just hoped that Marianna would be willing to help her in some way, other than just allowing Lugia to stay in her city for the moment.</p>
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<a name="section0018"><h2>18. The Matriarch</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            After having landed next to the Governmental Palace of the Adalsian port city of Rokol, Lugia was following the Sealeo Guard Lieutenant Mark and his two Grapploct Sergeants. They were headed towards the towering wooden double doors that acted as the main entryway to Rokol’s seat of government. Lugia had been informed that the leader of the city was named Marianna and that her title was Matriarch. Lugia wondered how leaders were picked in Rokol and if there could be male leaders called Patriarchs. She had not visited the region in person in for so long that she knew little about Rokol, even though she was widely worshipped in the city.</p><p>            Lugia was snapped out of her thoughts when Mark asked her, “Your Ladyship, pardon my question, but you mentioned that the ones you say are threatening this area call themselves the Band of the Star. From everything that I have heard, the Band of the Star are, or at least were, well-respected adventurers. They have reportedly fought against infidels, slavers and other evildoers over the last few years. Why would they have tried to put you to death?”</p><p>            Lugia looked down at Mark as the doors to the Governmental Palace were opening. She then told the Sealeo Lieutenant, “It’s complicated. What I will say for now is that the Band of the Star’s leadership has decided to rally their network of allies and agents towards the goal of eradicating most Legendary Pokémon. They managed to lure me into a trap after inciting unrest on the frontier of my sovereign realm. Only the timely arrival of my vassals and some of their mortal soldiers saved me from being executed by the Band’s leader.”</p><p>            All three members of the Rokol City Guard were clearly surprised by what Lugia had told them. However, Mark responded, “I will have the messenger on duty informed that you are here and that you need to speak with the Matriarch. They will let the Matriarch know that she is to come to the main hall and speak with you. This should not take very long.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded as she ducked her head to follow Mark and his two subordinates into the massive, wood paneled, main hall of the Governmental Palace. The few Pokémon who were milling about the main hall all looked stunned to see Lugia carefully walking into the building. Some of them were wearing guard badges. However, most of them were not. Many of the present Pokémon made sure to bow to Lugia quickly after they had first spotted her. The others were mostly too surprised to do much of anything. Lugia was only partially used to this sort of reception, since she had not left her own realm all that often historically.</p><p>            Mark went over to a nearby Pikipek who was wearing a couriers satchel. He told her, “Wendy, please go inform the Matriarch that the Lady Lugia herself is here to see her at once! This is to be considered a top priority urgent matter!”</p><p>            Wendy nodded and then quickly flew away into what Lugia presumed were the deeper recesses of the Governmental Palace. Lugia then looked over at the various Pokémon in the main hall and told them, “Please feel free to go about your business as you normally would. I am here to speak with your leader about an important matter. We will need some degree of privacy once she arrives in this hall.”</p><p>            The Pokémon in the main hall mostly did their best to get back to whatever they had been up to before Lugia had arrived. However, they were all still mentally processing her unexpected arrival. Lugia briefly wondered what it was like to be a mortal, even a well-respected one. The far shorter lifespan was a serious problem from her perspective. However, being able to be treated more normally and not draw so much attention had to be nice in some ways. She remembered that Ho-oh’s killer, his former servant Suicune, had wanted to relinquish her immortality, but had decided to give up her chance at becoming mortal again in order to return her two “brothers” to life. Despite Suicune having been the one who had taken her brother’s life, Lugia wished that someday she could become as heroic as the Incarnation of the North Winds. It made perfect sense that Tiberius had referred to Suicune as a “righteous immortal,” there was no way that even he could view her as a tyrant. That was especially true seeing as though she had reportedly recently confessed her former mortality to those who had worshiped her and asked to live amongst them.  </p><p>            Lugia was snapped out of her thoughts by the sound of a door opening at the opposite end of the chamber. The Pikipek messenger Wendy was returning. Following her was a somewhat elderly-looking female Walrein who wore a necklace made of pearls. That piece of jewelry was likely worth thousands of Poké. Lugia was unsure if it was a signifier of office, or if it was just a particularly ornate and expensive piece of jewelry.</p><p>            The Walrein managed to haul herself over to Lugia. She spent a quick moment looking up at the mighty Guardian of the Seas in awe. She then bowed to Lugia and told her, “My Lady, it is quite the honor to meet you in person. I am Matriarch Marianna, the current leader of the city of Rokol. Might I ask exactly what is it that has brought you to our city today and how we can be of assistance to you?”</p><p>            Lugia smiled down at Marianna and replied, “I will explain my situation momentarily. However, I would appreciate it if your guards made a perimeter of sorts to give the two of us some privacy in this hall. It is possible that my enemies could have spies even here. Also, I am curious as to what function your lovely pearl necklace serves.”</p><p>            Marianna told Mark, “Have your guards politely ask all civilians to leave the main hall for now.” As Mark and his subordinates went to carry out their orders, Marianna told Lugia, “This pearl necklace is the signifier of my office as the leader of Rokol. The Matriarchs and Patriarchs of the past few centuries have worn it as I do now. It is quite a treasure. However, it would not surprise me if there were many works of art of similar value to it in the treasury of your palace.”</p><p>            Lugia noticed that the non-guards in the main hall were leaving now at the insistence of the guards. Mark and his fellows guards kept watch at the many doors that led in and out of the main hall. Lugia then told Marianna, “You will need some context before I explain what exactly I need your help with. I will tell you first that the group known as the Band of the Star and their leader Tiberius are the ones who I am in conflict with. They may have acted as admired and reputed adventurers in the past. However, now they have placed themselves at the head of a conspiracy against most of the world’s Legendary Pokémon. They have also marked me for death. Even though it embarrasses me to admit it, they had forced my surrender once not long ago. Tiberius nearly managed to execute me before unexpected reinforcements arrived and saved my life.”</p><p>            Marianna looked quite surprised. She regained her composure relatively quickly and then asked Lugia, “Why don’t you start at the beginning, My Lady. I have heard of the Band of the Star and Tiberius, their leader, before. However, I was completely unaware that they were strong enough to defeat a being such as yourself and malevolent enough to want to see you dead.”  </p><p>            Lugia admitted, “Their highest-ranking members wielded powerful spears that seemed connected with the infidels who were defeated near here around three years ago. Those weapons helped to even the odds when combined with their combat experience and superior numbers. Now, let me tell you the whole story.”</p><p>            Marianna nodded and then listened as Lugia recounted the events of the last couple of months to her. She started with the uprising in Ladoria and how it was put down. She then explained how the investigation into Tiberius had led to her leaving for Naoma in the hopes of helping the villagers there against the Band. She told Marianna about her defeat and capture at the hands of Tiberius and his elite team. She then recounted her rigged trial in the Naoma village square, her nick-of-time rescue and her leaving to pursue the Band of the Star. She also talked about the revelation that Tiberius had other allies, including the humans of Taleria. She then concluded by going over her raid against the Band’s coastal sea cave base, which was still operational as far as she knew.</p><p>            As Marianna was processing the story that Lugia had just told her, Lugia added, “I have come here both to warn you about the threat of the Band and their nearby naval base and to ask your city for help regarding taking the installation down for good. Tiberius himself and his likely current second in command, Earnest, were both stationed there when I raided the cavern. I was able to sink around a quarter of their fleet and destroy much of their artillery. I also think that there may be tunnels that lead in and out of the base from somewhere nearby the rock formations.”</p><p>            Marianna nodded and told Lugia, “Your report is certainly concerning, My Lady. If the Band of the Star seeks to trigger the violent and dramatic change in the world that you say that they do, then our city could be greatly at risk. I will have reconnaissance teams led by our most experienced and reliable scouts set off immediately to see if they can find any tunnel entrances hidden nearby the rock formation. We will also send some aquatic scouts to carefully check the rough area where you said you destroyed the hidden front door of the installation. I will plan to have the scouts report back no later than early tomorrow morning. If it seems like the base is still occupied, then we will work to rapidly devise a plan to assault it. You are welcome to stay here in Rokol for as long as you feel the need to, My Lady.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded down at Marianna. She was still feeling tired from her recent battle, even though most of her wounds had healed up by now. Lugia then replied to the Matriarch of Rokol, “I will go with any force that you might send to attack the Band’s base. I intend to be at the head of the formation, of course. As for your offer to let me stay here, I would love to take you up on your hospitality. I will have to see if there places around here where I could comfortably rest for a bit. I will look forward to hearing the report from your scouts as soon as it is ready.”</p><p>            Marianna bowed to Lugia once again and then headed over to start giving out orders to her guards regarding the preparation of  multiple scouting teams. Lugia then left the Governmental Palace and flew herself to the beach nearby the local docks. Mostly ignoring the surprised locals and visitors, since she was quite tired by now, Lugia found a place on the beach to lay down and rest herself for the night.</p><p>            The next morning, Lugia returned to the Governmental Palace where she found Matriarch Marianna waiting for her there along with Mark the Sealeo. Lugia asked the two aquatic mortals, “I do sincerely appreciate your city’s help in my fight. With that said, have your scouts returned yet and given their reports?”</p><p>            Marianna and Mark both nodded affirmatively. Mark then told Lugia, “My Lady, two tunnels leading inside the rock formations were uncovered by our veteran scouts last night. Also, our scouting team on the water found the door you had smashed through and investigated it. Both teams ended up cautiously advancing and meeting each other inside the cavern base. As you might be able to infer, it was abandoned. There was plenty of wreckage of ships and artillery, along with some abandoned supplies. However, it seems that whoever was there packed up what they could and sailed away in a real hurry. Our scouts may have only missed them by about an hour or two. Still, you were right that the someone was operating out of that cave. In fact, the scouts did find some banners that matched the known uniform of the Band of the Star. There were also banners and some equipment, such as armor, left behind that looked to be connected with the Kingdom of Taleria.”</p><p>            Lugia fumed, “So, the Band realized that their position was compromised and retreated before I could get help. They are smart and slippery, that is for sure. …Thank you for your assistance so far. You should still be on alert for any spies that Tiberius may have inside of this city. I would like your permission to use Rokol as a base for the next couple of days at least as I search for more evidence of the Band’s activity. I would also like to return to the abandoned base with some of your Pokémon who can fit into smaller spaces no later than tomorrow. I want to see if the enemy left anything behind that could indicate where they are headed now.”</p><p>            Marianna and Mark both bowed to Lugia. Marianna then told the Sea Guardian, “We will assist you however we can. Tomorrow morning at the latest, we will send a second team in with you to investigate the sea cave in more detail. Regardless of what happens next, we hope that you manage to track down these rogues and put an end to their violent plans.”</p><p>            Mark added, “We will also be on alert for any hostile agents that may have already been planted in our city. We will not want them causing any sort of trouble with, or without, you in the vicinity, Lady Lugia.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded and then thanked Mark and Marianna for their help one more time. She knew that she had to find some sort of a lead regarding where Tiberius was taking his fleet. Whether or not he had split his forces up, she needed to find the leader of the Band of the Star and confront him one more time. Hopefully, it would be their final confrontation and she would come out definitively on top.</p>
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<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Departing Rokol</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Lugia spent much of the rest of the day after learning about her enemies’ evacuation of their sea cave base scouring the vicinity around the city of Rokol from the air. She was staying on the lookout for any possible hints of activity from the Band’s allies. Also, Lugia wanted to see if she could find any noticeable hints regarding where Tiberius’s fleet had sailed to. Were they headed for Taleria to regroup with their allies, or were they headed somewhere else to try and start an anti-Legendary uprising there?</p><p>            The next day, Lugia had revisited the abandoned sea cave base at the head of over twenty guards and scouts from Rokol. Most of the Pokémon accompanying Lugia viewed it as a great honor to be going with her on any sort of mission. Lugia had come to realize that most of them had never expected to meet her in the flesh. She wondered how many other mortals were out there who wanted to meet her, but had not had the chance.</p><p>            Despite conducting an extremely through search of the abandoned base and taking meticulous notes regarding what was found, no real clues to Tiberius’s planned destination were located. Lugia had done her best to thank the Pokémon from Rokol who had gone with her to investigate the evacuated base. However, she was becoming more and more worried about where Tiberius was headed as she returned to the port city with the others. She knew that she could not rest for long until the threat posed by the Band of the Star was dealt with. However, she no longer had any leads on where her enemies were going.</p><p>            Lugia had decided to spend one more night on the beach just outside of Rokol and then figure out what her next move would be the next day. She was well aware that she was wasting time at the moment. However, she was not sure what the best course of action for her to take next would be. The Matriarch of Rokol and her citizens had been good hosts to her, keeping a respectful distance and being polite and courteous. Lugia did not want to impose on the Pokémon of Rokol any longer. She had already alerted them to the potential danger of spies working for the Band of the Star hiding in their midst. Lugia had made it clear to the authorities in Rokol, after returning from the sea cave base, that they should be careful in how they investigated possible spies in their city. She was sure that a tough crackdown on possible dissidents would only make the agitators’ point for them, along with being a tyrannical action in of itself.</p><p>            Lugia had just woken up on the beach again after what she was sure would be her final night in the vicinity of Rokol for the time being. She stretched her wings and then yawned somewhat loudly. As Lugia looked around her, she realized that there was a single male Rufflet standing on a rock not far from where she had been sleeping. The Rufflet was wearing a sash that marked him as a member of the Falira Militia. As Lugia focused on the militia Rufflet, she remembered that a member of his species had been seen among the flying squad that had dived in to rescue her from execution at Naoma. Maybe the two Rufflet were one and the same?</p><p>            The Rufflet politely asked Lugia, “Are you fully awake yet, Your Ladyship?”</p><p>            Lugia nodded affirmatively and asked the avian, “What is your name and how did you find me here?”</p><p>            The Rufflet nodded himself and then explained, “My name is Joseph, My Lady. I am an air scout of the Falira Militia. I was present at the battle that led to your liberation from the rogue adventurers who had you in chains. As for why I am here, I went with Lady Moltres on her mission under your orders. I was ordered to return to Falira and then report to the regents running the island while our Lady is in Tarkasia. However, I stopped here on my way home to rest. I knew that many residents of this city worship you, so I thought that it would be a safe place to briefly stop. I learned that you were here from some of the local guards after explaining myself to them. I thought that it would make sense to give you Lady Moltres’s report directly before returning to Falira.”</p><p>            Lugia smiled at Joseph and told him, “That was good thinking, kid. Now, please give me Moltres’s report. It sounds like she is at least doing alright as of when you last saw her.”</p><p>            Joseph looked a bit upset at having been called a kid. However, he rapidly regained his composure and told Lugia, “Very well. …Lady Moltres led her strike team deep into Tarkasia after receiving your orders. She and Sir Corran soon led us into nation of Taleria. We made a beeline for the capital city and surprised the guards at the royal palace using cloud cover. While Sir Corran led most of the rest of us to distract the human soldiers there, Lady Moltres burst into the throne room using conjured boulders to smash her way in. She felled a number of human guards who did not simply flee from her using her fiery attacks. Then, she threatened King Hadrianus with her fiery breath and rapidly snatched him up with her talons as he was cowering. We retreated from the Talerian Capital after that. Lady Moltres and the rest of the air team have hold up in some high-up rock formations just outside of Talerian territory. Lady Moltres considered returning to Naoma, but she did not want to bring down the whole Talerian Army on that small village. When I was sent back home, Lady Moltres was trying to get the Talerians to open up negotiations to get them to stop backing Tiberius. However, Sir Corran and many of the other flyers have been focused on stopping Talerian spies and soldiers from getting close enough to their camp to attempt a rescue of their king. Those flyers have also been collecting food and water on their forays out.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded sharply at Joseph and told him, “That is a good report to hear. At least Moltres has completed much of her mission. Still, I would like her back in Falira as soon as possible. You may return to Falira as soon as you are able, Joseph. I have decided that I will begin making my way back towards the Trench Realm today. I intend to visit the island of Likala first and see if Zapdos has returned with his soldiers and the boat carrying our prisoners.”</p><p>            Joseph saluted Lugia with a wing and then said, “I will be off for home in that case, Your Ladyship! Best of luck in reaching Likala safely, not that you will need it.” The Rufflet messenger then took off and flew out to sea. Lugia hoped that he would be able to make it back home safely. Of course, he had already flown an impressive distance recently. Therefore, he was likely up to the challenge. He was already easily more than halfway home from Tarkasia anyway.</p><p>            Knowing that her trip back home would likely only take her a couple of days at most, Lugia decided to go and say goodbye to Matriarch Marianna and thank her for her and her citizens’ assistance one last time. After that, she would be off across the ocean towards Likala. There, she would hopefully find Zapdos. She also intended to receive a status report regarding what, if anything, was happening with regard to the hunt for the Band of the Star’s spies who had infiltrated the Trench Realm.</p><p>            Lugia took off from the beach and flew into Rokol. There, she was able to meet with Matriarch Marianna in the main hall of the Governmental Palace. While she was saying goodbye to the leader of Rokol, Lugia mentioned the village of Naoma on the southern coast of Tarkasia to Marianna. Lugia pointed out how both communities considered her to be their patron and had both been of help to her recently. She suggested that if it was at all convenient, the two settlements should become engaged in some sort of trade. She knew that Naoma was mainly a logging community. Hopefully, a connection to a major port like Rokol would help the small village’s economy in some way.</p><p>            Marianna seemed to be making note of what Lugia had told her about Naoma. She then promised the Sea Guardian that she and her guards would be on alert regarding possible spies working for the Band in their midst. She also informed Lugia that her city would be there for her if their aid was ever requested again in the future. Just seeing Lugia in the area had been a big boon to local pride and morale across Rokol. Knowing that their patron could have need of their help had not reduced the locals’ faith in Lugia. It seemed to have made her slightly more relatable to them, in fact. The residents of Rokol seemed happy to know that Lugia was not oblivious to their devotion and that they could be of help to her.</p><p>            Feeling pleased that she had boosted local pride within Rokol, Lugia bade Marianna farewell and then took off from the port city. She was now headed out over the ocean in the direction of the island of Likala. She hoped to be there as soon as practical. After visiting Likala and meeting with Zapdos, Lugia was most likely going to return to her Deep Palace. From there, she planned on coordinating efforts to apprehend enemy spies and locate Tiberius’s fleet. As long as that fleet was out there somewhere, the possibility for more violent uprisings, like the one that had occurred in Ladoria, remained very real.</p><p>            As Lugia flew over the ocean back towards her home realm, a thought crossed her mind. Was there any ulterior motive to Tiberius’s hatred of Legendary Pokémon that had not been revealed to her yet? He had basically said to her that he wanted to be an agent of change in the world. He believed that the time when much of the world was under the sway of the Legendary Pokémon was overdue to end. Still, could there actually be some other reason why the Leader of the Band of the Star had decided to launch his crusade against most immortals? Why was he risking so much of his reputation and calling in so many allies in order to do something so obviously destructive. He had to believe that it would be worth it in the end. Still, why exactly was that?</p><p>            Continuing her flight back towards her home realm, Lugia hoped that she would either have the answer to that question, or defeat Tiberius for good, soon enough. Maybe, she would have both of those things? Still, even though some part of Lugia still wished that she could convince Tiberius and his followers that she was not an evil tyrant, she was afraid that they were too far gone now. She could not think of any reasonable way to convince them peacefully that their mission was both unnecessary and destructive.</p><p>As Lugia was flying west, she though about how even though the Band of the Star had nearly murdered her, most of their members and allies were probably not truly evil. Hopefully, she could end their plans with minimal loss of life and property. Doing so would hopefully both represent her beginning to fulfill her oath and stop a broader war from erupting across much of the world.</p>
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<a name="section0020"><h2>20. The Battle of Likala Island</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Lugia had spent the rest of the day after her departure from the Adalsian Continent flying and swimming towards the outskirts of her realm. She mostly stayed in the air because she wanted to be able to scan the ocean surface below her for any possible signs of an enemy presence. She still had no solid clues regarding where Tiberius’s fleet had sailed off to before it could have been detected by scouts sent from Rokol.</p><p>            The next day, Lugia had been able to make good time on her way towards the island of Likala. She had a feeling that she would make it to the island at some point in the evening. Upon her arrival in Likala, she hoped to meet with Zapdos and confirm that his prisoners had been delivered to the island’s dungeon. She also wanted to know if he had been able to send out her orders regarding how to search for, expose and arrest the hostile agents who had been sent to stir up unrest across both Falira and the Trench Realm. She knew that even if she returned to her Deep Palace, the fight against the Band of the Star and their allies was probably far from over. She needed to find a way to stop them before they would have a real chance to plunge the world into a multitude of wars.</p><p>            Now, the sky was darkening as Lugia closed in Likala. Not only had the afternoon turned into evening, but an ocean storm was brewing. Thankfully, the storm was actually looking to be a moderate one. Lugia knew her ocean storms well considering her centuries upon centuries of life as the Guardian of the Seas. That was true even though she had spent so much of her time deep underwater. The storm would most likely lead to rain and possibly some occasional thunder and lightning. However, it was not looking to generate strong enough winds or waves to toss ships about on the water, or even come close to doing so.</p><p>            Lugia, not being all that afraid of the brewing storm, flew right into it as she continued on her way towards Likala. She was pretty sure that the storm’s area would cover at least some of the small island that Zapdos called home. However, some bad weather was not going to stop her from reaching her destination. She had been away from home for so long that it would certainly be good to be back no matter the extenuating circumstances.</p><p>            As Lugia flew through the storm, her predications about how strong it would turn out to be seemed to have been proven accurate. There was rain and the occasional thunderclap and bolt of lightning, but not much in the way of severe winds, or raging waves.</p><p>            Now closing in on Likala, Lugia was able to make out the island in the distance. As she got closer and closer, the occasional bolt of lightning illuminated the area briefly with flashes of light. As Lugia was nearing the eastern coast of Likala, farther away from the island’s small town, a particularly large flash of light revealed something that briefly surprised her.</p><p>            A fleet of at least ten warships, with a particularly large one at the center of the formation, was now in Lugia’s sight. It did not take her long to realize that this had to be Tiberius’s fleet with the larger ship having been picked up after the evacuation. It seemed like many of the ships had either run onto the shore of Likala, or sent rowboats towards the shore, already.</p><p>Scanning the decks of the ships, Lugia saw mostly human crew members. There were a few aquatic Pokémon staying nearby the ships that had not beached themselves. They were probably acting as escorts. The occasional ballista bolt or catapult boulder was fired at the island from the decks of the ships.</p><p>Lugia wondered briefly what could be going on. Tiberius had to know that even if his forces managed to capture Likala, Trench Realm reinforcements would arrive soon enough and attack his fleet from under the water in massive numbers. They would never get away with this act of aggression in the long term. Lugia then realized that this had to be a raid, not an invasion. Tiberius must have realized that some of his most elite supporters were being taken to be held in Likala’s dungeon. Presumably, the prisoners had already been delivered to the island by now. Tiberius had enough spies that even one of them could have spotted Zapdos’s returning force and found a way to report that information to the fleet.</p><p>Lugia almost smiled as she realized that this was in some way an opportunity. She would need to assess the situation better and then track down Tiberius soon after that. She intended to take down the leader of the Band of the Star. With him defeated, she would hopefully force the surrender of his fleet. Assuming that significant reinforcements loyal to her arrived from beneath the waves, that should be doable.</p><p>As Lugia flew towards the island proper, she heard the sounds of voices crying out and then rolled to the side to dodge two incoming ballista bolts. She then saw Zapdos come streaking out of the sky a good distance from her with a trail of around eight Honor Guard flyers behind him. Zapdos conjured a series of boulders as his soldiers covered him. As Lugia had done to some of the ships in the sea cave base, Zapdos flung his boulders into the deck of one of the enemy ships nearby the flagship and it soon began to take on water.</p><p>One the other side of the enemy fleet, Lugia saw the Wailord Honor Guard Captain Bubba surfacing while covered by two of his Wailmer subordinates. Bubba rammed right into an enemy warship’s hull then backed up for another go. He then executed a second ramming attack on the hull as arrows and blasts of high-pressure water were traded all around him. Bubba’s second ramming attack broke enough of a hole in the warship’s hull that it slowly began to sink. It seemed as though at least a few other aquatic Honor Guards and loyal militia members had arrived and were pressing the attack against Tiberius’s fleet and the enemy aquatic Pokémon trying to protect it.</p><p>As Bubba and his two Wailmer dived back beneath the waves, Lugia continued to fly towards Likala. As she neared the island, she saw small scattered pockets of Pokémon fighting across the island’s plains and farmland. She also saw that a number of enemies were still coming ashore. Tiberius had clearly brought everyone that he could for this raid.</p><p>As Lugia flew over the beach, she saw the Band of the Star member Earnest coordinating the deployment of ground units. His draining spear was strapped to his pack. A Clefable wearing one of the Band’s uniforms pointed up at Lugia and Earnest spotted her. Earnest’s eyes narrowed and he then took off into the sky followed by a trio of other flyers.</p><p>Earnest shouted down to the Clefable, “Bella, keep things coordinated on the ground for me! We need to cover our leader as he makes his way to our main objective! It seems as though the tyrant Lugia has shown her face. I will stall her for as long as I can!”</p><p>Bella nodded and gave a salute as Earnest and his three fellow flyers all flew up towards Lugia. The Xatu telekinetically readied his draining spear and then charged right for the airborne Sea Guardian.</p><p>            Lugia whirled around in the air and conjured four boulders in front of her. She then tossed them down at the incoming flight of enemies. A Crobat who had been following Earnest took a direct hit and went spiraling down to the ground. Earnest took a boulder, but kept coming. His two other subordinates were able to evade the projectiles that Lugia had sent their way.</p><p>            Earnest blasted Lugia with a torrent of foul wind. As she staggered back in the air and easily withstood attacks from the Skarmory and Golbat who were supporting Earnest, Lugia shouted, “I had a feeling that you are here to free our prisoners! You may very well have just confirmed my suspicions for me!”</p><p>            Earnest retorted, “Freeing Kiri and the others is an important goal. However, killing you and bringing about the end of your reign will do so much more to hasten the change that this world deserves!”</p><p>            Lugia angrily shouted back, “Why can’t you all see that I am not the villain here! You started this by stirring up violent unrest and then trying to trap and kill me! You have made powerful enemies, you know!” Lugia then charged up her body with draconic energy and dove down into her airborne enemies.</p><p>            Earnest managed to evade Lugia’s diving attack while his Skarmory follower took the hit and was still conscious and airborne. However, the Golbat who had been following them was knocked out of the sky in one hit from Lugia’s charged body.</p><p>            As Lugia’s energy field dissipated and she had to dodge some attacks sent up at her from the ground, Earnest and his Skarmory follower dove down to attack her. Earnest charged Lugia with his draining spear and managed to embed it in her stomach. Lugia cried out in pain as she tried to stay airborne.</p><p>            The injured enemy Skarmory was suddenly attacked from behind. Cicero had appeared and flown up behind him and struck him in the back with an electrically charged punch. The Skarmory tumbled out of the air as Cicero called out, “We are tired of your villainy, Band of the Star!”</p><p>            Earnest was distracted enough that Lugia was able to do a quick roll to dislodge his weapon from her stomach. Lugia then screamed in fury and summoned up her boulders. She sent two of them successfully crashing into Earnest, even though the other two missed. The Xatu was sent reeling from the sky and landed on the ground, unconscious and barely alive.</p><p>            Cicero summoned up a twister of draconic energy as a number of enemies ran to try and recover Earnest’s dropped, charged, draining spear. The resulting blast destroyed the weapon’s crystal head and it detonated with energy. At least three hostile Pokémon were downed by the explosion of the spear combined with Cicero’s initial blast.</p><p>            Lugia and Cicero quickly evaded some ranged attacks sent up at them by the remaining enemies on the ground. Lugia then rapidly asked Cicero, “Do you have any idea where Tiberius is?”</p><p>            Cicero nodded and responded, “He was headed straight for the island’s town with some other members of his Band. Some of his supporters had to peel off to engage the locals trying to stop them. We should have reinforcements on their way from across the Realm coming in to trap the enemy soon enough. Even if their spies try to stop us by joining the battle, there should not be enough of them to sabotage our efforts. Thankfully, the fleet was detected before it reached Likala.”</p><p>            Lugia flew a bit further away from the enemies on the ground and replied to Cicero as he did the same, “Fall back and take command of our ground forces! I am going to hunt down and engage Tiberius myself! If he falls in battle, I think that this whole raid will fall apart. We can seriously defang this rogue movement tonight!”</p><p>            Cicero saluted Lugia. He told her, “Be careful, My Lady. Tiberius was seen carrying what looked like an upgraded version of the draining spear. He seemed adept at wielding it.” Cicero then decided to waste no more time and flew west to see what friendly units on the ground he could link up with.</p><p>            Lugia headed for Likala’s town at full speed after Cicero flew off. The enemies on the ground were no longer trying to engage her, they were out of range at this point. As Lugia flew farther away from the beach, she looked back and saw an enemy warship sinking below the waves and a rowboat being capsized. Presumably, her loyal followers were behind those vessels sinking. As she scanned the area below her for her target, Tiberius, she hoped that she could end the battle with minimal further casualties on both sides soon. The enemy would hopefully be outnumbered in short order. Also, their fleet’s escape would ideally be cut off by swarms of aquatic Pokémon. Still, the enemies she and her supporters were facing were less evil and more so misguided. Lugia had made a vow to become a better Pokémon. She knew that part of that would mean at least partially suppressing her prideful and vengeful instincts and focusing on minimizing the loss of life in the battle. Still, she was sure that she would have to confront Tiberius one last time if she was to bring about an end to his dream of slaying most of the world’s Legendary Pokémon.</p>
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<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Tiberius</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Now, Lugia was rapidly approaching the small, mostly-stone, town that covered the western half of Likala. She saw scattered pockets of Pokémon fighting on the ground as she scanned the vicinity for Tiberius. She was quite determined to locate the Crawdaunt leader of the Band of the Star. Lugia intended to confront him for what would ideally be the final time that evening.</p><p>            The Island of Likala was still within the radius of a moderate oceanic storm at the moment. The flashes of lightning illuminated the battle below Lugia as she flew over the eastern gate of the town. The gate had been broken down. However, some of the locals were keeping a few of Tiberius’s followers at bay all around it. Lugia wished that she could help them more. However, she was determined to locate and defeat the enemy leader. She did not want him freeing his captured comrades. It was likely that the captives were not being actively guarded, seeing as though it looked like every citizen of Likala’s Town who could fight effectively had been sent to engage the enemy.</p><p>            Lugia soon found herself flying towards the town square, which had been constructed in more of an oval shape. Zapdos’s tower was less than a block away. Under it was the dungeon where Kiri and the other prisoners were likely being held. She hoped that most of the weaker civilian Pokémon were taking shelter from the storm and the battle wherever they could. Most of them had likely never expected their island home to come under attack from any foreign force. However, it was happening now. With any luck, the raid would be thwarted soon enough. Lugia would do whatever she could to cut off the head of the radicalized enemy force as soon as she could find him.</p><p>            As Lugia flew low over the square, she heard an all too familiar male voice asking, “Where is this town’s dungeon? I don’t want to hurt any of you. Just tell me where the dungeon is and I will be on my way.”</p><p>            Lugia’s eyes narrowed as she Tiberius standing in the center of the square holding what appeared to be a Draining Spear with two extra forward-facing crystals attached to it. All three crystals were glowing at the moment. This was the new upgraded version of the Band’s signature weapon. Tiberius had been talking to a small group of civilian Pokémon standing, clearly afraid, in a street leading west from the square, the direction of Zapdos’s tower and the dungeon that sat below it.</p><p>            Lugia rapidly flew down and landed in the square not far from Tiberius, causing the nearby civilians to cheer and Tiberius to stagger back only slightly. The Sea Guardian sternly told the leader of the Band of the Star, “Tiberius! Your quarrel is with me! You think that you are going to do the mortals of our world a service by removing those like me from power. Yet, you wield a weapon created using what little is left of a Rogue Legendary Pokémon! Today, I will bring about an end to you and your hypocritical movement!”</p><p>            Tiberius actually chuckled a little bit and then sighed. As Lugia glared sternly down at him, he told her, “You really are tenacious, you know that? Lugia, you have proven to be my most worthy opponent yet. Even though I nearly had you back in Naoma, you have not given up, just as I have not. Before I kill you, I want you to know something. You deserve to know the full story behind why I am trying to end the reign of your kind.”</p><p>            Lugia realized that there was indeed a reason for Tiberius’s actions that he had not disclosed to her earlier. She asked him, “Alright, tell me your reason before this ends in violence, as we both know it will. Why do you so hate most Legendary Pokémon?”</p><p>            As the civilians stood behind Lugia, waiting to see what would happen, Tiberius explained, “I never knew my father. …However, I am so glad that I never met him. He was a charismatic adventurer who briefly stopped in my home village and was only with my mother for one night. Still, long after my birth, he revealed his own madness and tried to seize the power of a Legendary Pokémon for himself. His insanity cost many lives, including those of his supporters. In the end, he was killed by a defector who had once stood close to his side. After the truth reached my hometown, my mother and I were chased out of the settlement. I vowed to redeem my lineage by founding the Band of the Star. It was when I realized that true Legendary Pokémon could be slain that I decided that I knew what I had to do. You see, I am well aware that I have some of my father’s mad lust for power in my blood. That is just like how you have your brother’s controlling instincts and undeserved pride. Nobody can fully change who and what they are in this world, after all. Still, I am pointing myself in the direction where I can do the most damage to those who wield power they do not deserve! Lugia, nobody should have the sort of power that you have! The lust to obtain that power was my father’s madness and his just downfall! I will wipe that power from this world starting with you!”</p><p>            Lugia sighed and told Tiberius, as she took to the air, “You sad, pitiful creature. You are so blind to the suffering and destruction that you are causing now! You seem to have become like your villainous father after all!”</p><p>            Tiberius shouted back, “You can say whatever you like! It does not change the fact that you will be slain soon enough! Your death will be just the spark I need to convince thousands of others that your kind’s rule can and should be ended!” The Crawdaunt then fired off a mighty barrage of bubbles up into Lugia while the few civilians still in the area watched the duel begin.</p><p>            Lugia charged up and fired off a mighty Aeroblast at Tiberius. However, he was able to duck most of the rushing attack and prevent his weapon from being destroyed.</p><p>            Tiberius began to quickly advance on the low-flying Lugia. He used his weapon to vault up into the air and deliver a surprisingly strong bite to one of Lugia’s feet. The Sea Guardian winced in pain and then Tiberius grabbed on to Lugia’s foot with one of his pincers. He then stabbed her in the leg with his weapon shouting, “The Draining Trident will help me to finish you off, ‘Your Ladyship!’”</p><p>            Lugia felt her energy being rapidly drained to supercharge the crystals at the tip of Tiberius’s trident. Fighting through terrible pain, she did a rapid roll in the air which managed to dislodge Tiberius, who kept his hold on his trident.   </p><p>            Tiberius landed as Lugia tossed a series of boulders at him. The Crawdaunt took two boulders and staggered back while still holding his intact weapon. At this point, all three of the crystals at the end of the Draining Trident were glowing with a brilliant and vibrant reddish light.</p><p>            Lugia admitted that Tiberius was quite a resilient enemy. He had taken so many attacks that most mortals would be knocked unconscious, or even killed, by and survived. He was ready to keep fighting, despite all that he had managed to withstand. Seeing that her opponent was still somewhat staggered, she flew a bit higher into the air and sent a mighty Aeroblast down at Tiberius.</p><p>            Tiberius smiled a bit as he projected one of his energy shields with perfect timing. The defensive move blocked the Aeroblast completely, leaving Lugia frustrated and wondering what her opponent was going to do next. Both of them were quite injured at this point. Still, Lugia could fly and Tiberius could not.</p><p>            Seeing that Lugia was injured, but so was he, Tiberius shouted, “I am getting tired of this dance, Lugia! Taste the true power of the Draining Trident!” Tiberius took aim at Lugia and then fired off a massive beam of reddish energy that was emitted from all three crystals at once.</p><p>            Lugia quickly realized that this attack could either kill her outright, or knock her from the sky, leaving her vulnerable for a killing blow. She rapidly evaded the mighty, sustained, beam of energy. She dived closer to the ground while still in the air. Tiberius was not able to swing his weapon fast enough to track Lugia’s quick movement while firing off the powerful energy beam. Thankfully, the trio of crystals ran out of power before Lugia would have reached the ground.</p><p>            As Lugia was about to counterattack, she heard a noise from behind her, she turned around as Tiberius also seemed distracted by whatever was going on. Lugia saw that Tiberius’s mighty energy beam had ended up slicing off the upper portions of a multi-story stone tower at the western edge of the square at an angle. The stone building’s upper levels were sliding off of the lower portion of the structure. The bigger problem with this was that a number of civilian Pokémon were standing right in the path of the debris. They had remained in the area to watch their Lady battle the hostile intruder. The amount of incoming stone was more than enough stone to crush them all to death.</p><p>            Without really even thinking, Lugia quickly flew into the path of the debris as Tiberius advanced on the ground with his trident still out. She charged her body with draconic energy. However, she was already somewhat weak and the falling debris overwhelmed her. Thanks to Lugia’s quick action, the civilian Pokémon were all able to get out of the way. They then began to flee farther away from the square. However, Lugia was now lying on her back on the ground badly wounded, somewhat stunned and with only Tiberius in the area from what she could see.</p><p>            Tiberius looked to be taking advantage of Lugia’s weakened and stunned state. As the Sea Guardian was covered in rubble and had not yet even begun to really get up and try to shake it off of her, he was charging with his trident held in both of his pincers. As Lugia did her best to refocus herself, she saw that Tiberius was aiming his weapon straight for her head. He was likely going to be able to get a killing blow in soon enough.</p><p>            Seeing that Tiberius was rapidly closing in on her, Lugia realized that she was likely going to die soon. Somehow, the Leader of the Band of the Star was once again in a position to end her life. This time, there looked to be no backup coming to save Lugia. Even if Tiberius was later killed and his raid failed, he would have at least managed to decapitate the Trench Realm, potentially sparking mass unrest. Lugia closed her eyes and hoped that her soul would be not be judged too harshly for her previous sins. She was about to die right after having saved the lives of multiple innocents, after all.</p><p>---</p><p>            Tiberius charged at Lugia as fast as his legs could carry him holding his trident in both of his pincers. The Crawdaunt knew that now was his chance to finish Lugia off and bring about the end of her reign and the end of the Trench Realm. He was going to avenge Trajan and all of his other comrades who had died on the way to this point. Then, he was going to find that damn dungeon and free Kiri and the other members of his band who were being held captive.</p><p>            As Tiberius got close to the spot where Lugia lay covered by rubble and only starting to stir, a number of thoughts rapidly whirled in his mind. Why had Lugia taken the hit from the rubble, saving the civilians, but leaving herself open for him to finish her off? What sort of tyrant would do that, especially when facing as foe so clearly bent on her death?</p><p>            Tiberius was about to let out a rage-filled cry when he remembered the “trial” that he had set up in Naoma to justify executing Lugia. Kiri had sensed genuine remorse in her aura and had not sensed any dishonesty either. Still, if Lugia was not like Ho-oh after all, if she was not a tyrant, then what he had been stirring up unrest in her territory for? What had some many of his followers and allies fought and even died for? There was no way that he could back down now. Or, was there?</p><p>            Now, Tiberius remembered all that he had heard about his father. He remembered hearing how villains never asked for permission from anyone to carry out their schemes. They tried to impose themselves on the world without caring what damage they did and who was harmed through their words and actions. It suddenly dawned on Tiberius that he was becoming far more like his father than he had cared to admit to even himself earlier. He was insisting that most Legendary Pokémon were oppressors and that they did not deserve to live. Still, who actually was he to decide who lived or died so arbitrarily?</p><p>            Finally, it fully dawned on Tiberius, as he got very close to Lugia, who had now closed her eyes. She was likely awaiting him striking his final, fatal, blow against her. He was becoming a villain. Killing Lugia would not make him his father’s opposite like he had hoped. It would mean him following in the footsteps of his father in some way. If Lugia could become the sort of Pokémon who would risk herself to save innocents without a second thought, then he could resist the pull to evil that he had always feared deep down. He would not allow his descent into darkness to be completed. He was going to have to change and do so very quickly.</p><p>---</p><p>            Lugia’s eyes were closed as she heard Tiberius closing in on her. Suddenly, his footsteps stopped as the rain continued to fall. Lugia heard Tiberius saying, “You insisted that you are not your brother… I should have listened to you and Kiri then. …You are not your brother and I am NOT my father!”</p><p>            Lugia opened her eyes to see Tiberius scream with guilt and rage. He then snapped the draining trident in half and angrily buried the uncharged front of the weapon into the ground. As Lugia began to haul herself up and push the rubble off of her, she realized that her one dramatic and heroic action had done what her words had been unable to do alone. Somehow, she had finally made Tiberius realize that she was not evil.</p><p>            Tiberius sighed deeply and then continued, as Lugia continued to haul herself up, “All that I ask is that you let Kiri and my other friends go. We will leave you in peace after that. I will withdraw all of my agents from your territory and this whole colossal fiasco will be over. I am glad that I did not have the chance to murder you back in Naoma. That would have been a terrible mistake.”</p><p>            As Lugia managed to stand up, still teetering a bit, she smiled briefly and then replied, “If we are agreeing to a ceasefire, then we better alert all of our forces about that immediately! We do not want anyone else to die tonight.”</p><p>            Tiberius refocused himself and nodded. He then told Lugia, “We better get to that and fast. I will have to find some way to redeem myself and my organization after this. Still, thank you for showing me that one’s birth does not determine their destiny.”</p><p>            Still feeling a bit woozy, Lugia nodded and then took off to alert the forces that were still fighting about the ceasefire. Tiberius followed her on the ground. Both of them were determined to stop the violence as quickly as possible. The release of prisoners and the signing of a formal agreement would have to wait. As Lugia flew over Likala, the storm began to calm down and the rain started to slow to a trickle. She knew that even though Tiberius had finally admitted that he had been horribly wrong to seek her overthrow and execution, that he had been fundamentally right about the potential for abuses of power. She was going to keep working to fulfill her oath. Stopping the battle and preventing the loss of any more lives was her first priority. Still, those two goals fit together quite nicely.</p>
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<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Epilogue: With Grand Calamity Prevented</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Immediately following the impromptu truce that Tiberius and Lugia had struck, the news of the ceasefire was spread around the battlefield that Likala and the surrounding ocean had become. As the storm began to clear up, both of the warring sides ceased their violence. Despite the battle taking place on their turf and massed reinforcements being on their way to crush the enemy, Lugia’s forces still ultimately answered to her. They obeyed her order to stand down and cease engaging the raiders.</p><p>Tiberius was able to get his Pokémon allies on the ground to stand down quickly and then have the ceasefire message sent to what was left of his fleet at that point. The mostly-human crew of the Talerian ships were happy and relieved that a ceasefire had been declared. They had been having significant trouble dealing with Trench Realm forces attacking them from underwater, even with help from the aquatic Pokémon they had escorting them. The mighty Wailord Captain Bubba had proven a terrifying foe to deal with for the Talerian crews and their Pokémon allies. Of course, Zapdos and his small air team had also been able to make a significant dent in the raider fleet as well.</p><p>As night fell over Likala, more Honor Guards and loyal militia Pokémon arrived from the nearby underwater settlements. It was decided that the treaty that would end the war before it even fully began would be drafted and signed as early as the next day. Both sides kept their eyes on each other during the night. However, no more hostilities broke out before daybreak.</p><p>The next morning, a series of terms were agreed to and were put to paper in the treaty that would end the conflict between the Band and the Trench Realm. Kiri and the other prisoners taken after the Battle of Naoma had concluded were to be released to their friends and allies soon after the treaty was signed. Also, the members of the Band of the Star and their allies would not be attacked by Lugia’s forces as they left the Trench Realm’s territory. In exchange, Tiberius agreed to order all of his agents withdrawn from the Trench Realm and Falira. He would also cease any and all attempts to actively overthrow Legendary Pokémon unprovoked. His agents would also be pulled out of other territories, unless their presence was deemed necessary to monitor potential acts of tyranny backed up by actual empirical evidence.</p><p>            The Treaty of Likala was signed by Lugia, Tiberius, Earnest, Zapdos, Cicero and the human Admiral of the Talerian Navy. Within a couple of hours of the treaty having been signed, Kiri and the other prisoners were released to their allies. Tiberius also began getting to work on drafting the recall orders for most of his spies. The former prisoners were surprised at how things had turned out. However, they were pleased to be being released from the dungeon so quickly. Earnest had also been surprised that Tiberius had voluntarily spared Lugia’s life and agreed to a ceasefire. However, he went along with his leader’s unexpected decision. The Faliran courier Joseph was sent to find Moltres and inform her of the end of the conflict. Moltres was to be told that she could release King Hadrianus as long as he agreed to honor the recently signed treaty. Also, an effort was to be made to find the Band of the Star member Douglas and the few remaining Ladorian refugees somewhere in the ocean. They were to be told that it was finally safe for the refugees to return home.</p><p>            With that, the surviving ships of Tiberius’s fleet sailed away. Most of them were headed home to the Tarkasian Continent. However, Tiberius and the other surviving members of the Band of the Star were able to purchase one of the less-damaged warships for themselves. They needed some means of transportation for the time being, after all. Wherever they were headed next, it was going to be somewhere where they could try to do some good. They were going to have to rebuild both their numbers and their organization’s reputation in the months to follow.</p><p>---</p><p>On board the Band of the Star’s ship two days after the signing of the treaty of Likala:</p><p>            Tiberius, Earnest and Kiri were all standing on the deck of their new ship. The warship that was acting as the headquarters of the Band of the Star for the time being was sailing northeast at the moment.</p><p>            As the three highest-ranking members of the Band stood on the deck of their ship, Earnest told Tiberius, “I know that I said this before, but I still cannot believe your sudden change of heart. Waking up to learn that you had agreed to a ceasefire despite having gotten an advantage over Lugia was possibly the biggest shock of my life. You also destroyed the Draining Trident, the last known weapon of its kind.”</p><p>            Kiri told Tiberius, “After learning everything that had transpired while you were trying to rescue me and the others, I think that you made the right decision, Tiberius. We cannot allow ourselves to become just another set of villains in this world’s story. We do not want to behave like those who we had previously worked to stop from imposing their will on others. In the end, Lugia was and is not Ho-oh. She deserved the chance to prove herself more worthy of her title than her brother ever was.”</p><p>            Tiberius nodded and then said, “I could not allow myself to become a murderer like my father had been. Seeing what Lugia did, without even really thinking… it kind of snapped me out of a trance of hatred. Still, now the real work begins. We have to rebuild our Band and try to move beyond being seen as the ones who nearly murdered a widely-respected icon. As you two should know, I have already sent out the withdrawal orders to all of our agents in the Trench Realm and Falira. Soon, I will have couriers bring similar orders to almost all of our other spies worldwide. Any of them who refuse to follow their new orders and instigate any unprovoked unrest will not have our backing.”</p><p>            Earnest and Kiri both nodded and then Earnest asked Tiberius, “Seeing as though our plans have changed drastically, where are we going to sail to now, sir?”</p><p>            Tiberius chuckled a bit and then told his two lieutenants, “I have already given the order for this ship to set sail for the western coast of the Grand Island. I think that it is high time we pay a visit to Creekside Town. I want to see if I can find and thank my father’s killer while we are there.”</p><p>            Kiri smiled over at Tiberius while Earnest simply gave a quick nod to his leader. As the ship continued to sail northeast, Tiberius hoped that Lugia would continue to work towards fulfilling her oath and proving his earlier assertions about her wrong.</p><p>---</p><p>Lugia’s personal chamber in the Deep Palace. Two weeks after the signing of the Treaty of Likala:</p><p>            Lugia was standing in her chamber along with her Lapras Palace Overseer Mera and the Honor Guard leader Colonel Cicero. Earlier that day, they had received news that Moltres was coming home with her air team having returned King Hadrianus of Taleria to his palace. The Talerian monarch had agreed to the terms of the Treaty of Likala in exchange for his release. Now, it seemed that the conflict with the Band of the Star was legitimately over. From what Lugia knew, Tiberius and company were on their way to the Grand Island and could already have arrived by now.</p><p>            Now, Lugia was looking down at Mera and Cicero. She asked them, “Did you make sure that my latest decree was sent out via couriers to all of the Realm’s settlements?”</p><p>            Mera nodded and replied, “Yes, My Lady. Still, it has me quite surprised. You decreed that any settlements of the Realm that want to become independent could do so if they democratically voted in favor of independence and submitted the results of the vote to us. Tiberius’s spies have been withdrawn, so I am not sure why you are suddenly making this concession.”</p><p>            Lugia explained, “I have come to realize that simply being who I am does not guarantee me the right to this territory. I do not want to force anyone to live under my rule anymore. I am repudiating Ho-oh’s ideology of supposedly divinely granted authority in the strongest terms that I can with this decree. I would hope that few, if any, of our settlements secede. However, I have given that power to the mortals who live in the settlements. It is the right thing to do and something that I should have done a long while ago.”</p><p>            Cicero then asked Lugia, “If you do not mind me asking, Lady Lugia, are there any other orders that you want us to carry out for you at the moment? You called us both here saying that you had an important announcement for us.”</p><p>            Lugia nodded sharply and told her two high-ranking servants, “I have made the decision to go on an extended leave of absence from this Realm starting as soon as tomorrow. I have already informed Zapdos of this. He will be in charge while I am gone. I trust that the two of you can report in to him for as long as ends up being necessary.”</p><p>            Mera, looking slightly surprised, asked Lugia, “My Lady, where is it that you intend to go on your leave of absence? What do you intend to do, or accomplish, with your time away?”</p><p>            Lugia replied, “I intend to travel the world for at least a few months and see what I can learn and remember about the world outside of my territory. That includes places located both above and below the waves. I am hoping to meet new people, see new places and maybe even right some wrongs while I am on leave from my duties here. While I am away, I want the gifts we were preparing shipped to the Village of Naoma, by the way. Please get that taken care of as soon as possible.”</p><p>            Mera and Cicero both nodded and then Lugia continued, “I know that I cannot fully fulfill my vow by just staying here in my palace. I am going to see what I can do for the world beyond while I am away. Tiberius and his comrades were wrong to assume that I was just another Ho-oh. Still, they knew what I was indeed guilty of. I will continue to work to redeem myself and make my immortal existence worthwhile for as long as I can. I will be back eventually and I trust that you two and Zapdos can handle whatever comes up here while I am away. Come to think of it, I might even decide to visit Articuno and tell her the truth while I am exploring the outside world.”</p><p>            Mera told Lugia, “We will not let you down, Lady Lugia. It is an honor to serve you and I hope that you get what you need out of your time exploring the world beyond.”</p><p>            Cicero nodded, saluted Lugia and told her, “I am sure that things should be peaceful again around here now that the brewing war has fizzled out. Still, I will keep my troops vigilant. If we are needed, we will be ready to leap into action. Have a fulfilling trip, My Lady.”</p><p>            Lugia smiled down at her mortal servants and then told them, “You two are dismissed. Thank you for everything and I am sure that we will see each other again in due time.”</p><p>            After Mera and Cicero had left, Lugia decided to get some rest. The next day, she would be off to begin her exploration of the wider world. The conflict with the Band of the Star was over, but her life still stretched out in front of her. She knew that she was in this world for a reason. She had responsibilities that most mortals had no need to take upon themselves. She was not done atoning and doing good yet. Maybe, she would never be finished with that work? In the end, maybe that was truly for the best?</p><p><em>Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: In the Wake of Power</em> THE END</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>And that concludes both this story and the PMD: Dawn of Civilization series. I hope that anyone who has read this far has enjoyed this story and the ones that came before it in this series. I sincerely thank all of you for your readership. With that said, I currently do not know when I will be posting another story on this website. I fully expect to be writing and posting new content again at some point. However, it might be a little bit before I have a new finished story for any fandom to post again. Still, your readership is appreciated and I hope that all of you stay safe. Thank you all for reading one more time.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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